Savage Menage Cynthia Sax To stop an enemy’s invasion, Starla travels with her hunky companion android to Lokan. Upon arrival, they’re captured by the primitive planet’s passion-starved males. As a rare and coveted female, Starla is to be awarded as a prize in their fighting ring. One of the savage, hard-bodied warriors will stake his claim sexually while the rest of the tribe watches. Bocc, the village outcast, takes one look at Starla and decides he’ll be the winning male. To claim her, he must battle his former tribesmen, defeat her overly possessive android and save his world from an invading army. But if Bocc wishes to keep his mate forever, he must also accept his android rival.
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Savage Menage ISBN 9781419940040 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED Savage Menage Copyright © 2012 Cynthia Sax Edited by Briana St. James Cover design by Dar Albert Photos: Guiseppe Parisi, Zanna Kotobova/Fotolia.com; Neo Edmund/Shutterstock.com Electronic book publication April 2012 The terms Romantica® and Quickies® are registered trademarks of Ellora’s Cave Publishing. With the exception of quotes used in reviews, this book may not be reproduced or used in whole or in part by any means existing without written permission from the publisher, Ellora’s Cave Publishing, Inc.® 1056 Home Avenue, Akron OH 44310-3502. Warning: The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. No part of this book may be scanned, uploaded or distributed via the Internet or any other means, electronic or print, without the publisher’s permission. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000. (http://www.fbi.gov/ipr/). Please purchase only authorized electronic or print editions and do not participate in or encourage the electronic piracy of copyrighted material. Your support of the author’s rights is appreciated. This book is a work of fiction and any resemblance to persons, living or dead, or places, events or locales is purely coincidental. The characters are productions of the author’s imagination and used fictitiously. The publisher and author(s) acknowledge the trademark status and trademark ownership of all trademarks, service marks and word marks mentioned in this book. The publisher does not have any control over, and does not assume any responsibility for, author or third-party Web sites or their content.
SAVAGE MENAGE Cynthia Sax
Savage Menage
Chapter One What is he doing? Captain Zeemus’ squeals of laughter echoed through the empty corridor. Starla turned to the huge male behind her. “Shhh…” She pressed her index finger to her mouth. Chrome, her companion android, nodded, his expression deceptively human, with only his blank silver eyes reflecting the machine. The green fabric of his medical suit stretched snugly across his massive chest, accentuating his manufactured muscles, and the flickering overhead lights made his tanned face appear even harder. I might often be overlooked. Starla smoothed down her brown leather wrap dress, the Lokan garment painstakingly replicated. But no one, not even that fool Zeemus, messes with my android. She crept down the corridor, making no noise and no sudden movements, and Chrome, her constant shadow, followed her, his steps equally inaudible. The sliding door to the bridge remained open, having been broken since the ship’s departure from the Federation docking bay eleven days ago, and the poignant aroma of Mox-X smoke tickled Starla’s nostrils. Drug addict. She curled her top lip in distaste. “Yeah. Yeah.” The captain giggled, the high-pitched sound verifying her suspicions. The man is as high as an Aviae flyer. “She’s a mousy little thing, but give me a few more days off world and I’ll do her,” Captain Zeemus bragged. In his dreams. Starla peeked around the doorframe. The bearded humanoid reclined in his chair, his feet propped up on his private viewscreen, all four of his hands resting on his round belly. Discarded ration containers covered the floor around him. “Maybe, if I’m desperate. Lokan is two days away.” He cradled a communicator in the curve of his neck. “I don’t know.” The captain sucked on the Mox-X inhaler, smoke billowing around his head. “They think the Balazoids might attack or something.” He 5
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released another ear-popping squeal. “I know. Who’d attack that shithole? You can’t even land a ship there.” Starla stared at the Federation captain, unable to believe her ears. He can’t be telling someone about our secret mission. He can’t be. He’ll get us all killed. “She claims the android’s shielded.” Captain Zeemus snorted, the chair creaking as he shifted his weight. “I hope she’s wrong and the planet deactivates his arrogant ass. I—” “Who are you talking to?” Starla stormed onto the bridge, her Lokan-style leatherwrap boots slapping the metal mesh floor. “And tell me you’re using a secured channel.” “Farpus. Gotta sign off.” Captain Zeemus straightened, dropping his communicator on the viewscreen, shattering the viewscreen into tiny pieces. “What are you doing here?” He fumed, his eyes bright yellow from the illegal drugs. “I told you the bridge was for authorized personnel only.” He stood, forcing Starla to look up. “Authorized personnel only? There are three of us on this ship.” She glared at him, her fists clenched. “You’ve jeopardized a top-secret mission, Captain.” A secret thrill zipped through her upon uttering those words. I’m on a top-secret mission. Me. She flattened her lips, suppressing her silly grin. Concentrate, Starla. The culture you love is at risk. “We have to report this to the Federation.” “We don’t want to do that, Professor Black.” Zeemus stepped closer to her and the stench of smoke, old sweat and engine grease engulfed Starla. “They’ll reroute us to the nearest Federation-friendly planet, the Balazoids will attack Lokan and you’ll never see your precious heathens again.” I’ve never seen them, period. Starla backed away, cautiously maintaining the same space between them. “Someone will warn them.” “Warn a handful of savages?” Captain Zeemus snorted. “If the Federation was truly concerned about the Lokans, they’d send a fleet of warships, not an irritating android
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and an inexperienced researcher.” He advanced, his hands clenched into fists, his stance menacing. Starla’s face heated as she retreated into the corridor. “I’m the Federation’s top expert on Lokan.” Thanks to Chrome. She glanced at her silent companion. The android watched them, his huge arms crossed. “You’re their only expert because no one cares about Lokan.” “I care.” Too much. Starla’s ass smacked against the corridor wall. “If you’ve harmed the Lokans with your carelessness…” “You’ll what?” Captain Zeemus slapped his four hands on the wall around her, trapping her body between them. “Write me up in one of your papers? Lecture me to death?” He laughed. “You can’t do anything to me.” “I can’t.” Starla tilted her face upward defiantly. “But the Federation can. When I return from Lokan—” “If you return from Lokan.” Zeemus gripped her chin and squeezed, pain shooting along her jaw. “Researchers disappear all—” He squealed as he was torn from her, his ill-kept nails raking over her skin. “This is my second warning.” Chrome held the smaller man up by the scruff of his neck. Captain Zeemus sputtered and gasped, his face red, his feet flailing in the air. “Don’t touch her.” Her huge android shook Zeemus so hard his teeth rattled. “Professor, please!” the captain pleaded. “Make him let me go.” I can’t make Chrome do anything. Starla stared up at her manufactured guardian, awed by the simulated anger etched in his tanned countenance. He appeared so real, his forehead high and protruding, his nose wide and flat, yet he was a marvel of engineering, an android originating on a planet where no other Federation technology could operate. “Don’t hurt him, Chrome,” she cautioned, wiping the emotion from her voice. “We need him to fly the transport ship to Lokan.”
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Chrome brought Zeemus’ face close to his. “There are no third warnings.” He lowered his bushy black eyebrows, his eyes flat and unyielding. “Touch her again and I’ll kill you.” Science save me from overprotective androids. “Chrome.” “I won’t hurt him.” He tossed Zeemus into the bridge. There was a loud thud followed by a whimper, and Starla raised her eyebrows. “The wall hurt him,” Chrome explained, shrugging his broad shoulders. Sweet study. I adore him. She shook her head, pressing her lips together to keep from laughing. “Please tell me Bocc doesn’t have your sense of humor.” She switched to Lokan, wishing to practice the harsh, guttural speech sounds. “My maker resembles me in all ways…except for his cock,” Chrome answered her in the same language. “His cock is larger.” Her pussy moistened. “I don’t need larger.” She placed her palms flat on her android’s chest, his muscles reassuringly solid and familiar. “I need you.” “You have me.” He slung her over his shoulder and she gasped, aroused by his rough handling. As he walked, she clung to his torso, her face pressed against his long black braid. “You are mine. No other male will touch you.” He strode to their sleeping chamber, his ass cheeks clenching and unclenching under his tight-fitting medical suit. “Bocc will have to touch me,” she murmured into the fabric. “Every fertile female on Lokan is claimed by a local male.” The door slid open with a hiss. “You are claimed by a local male,” Chrome rumbled, his back vibrating under her fingertips. “I am Lokan, and I claim you.” He flopped her down upon the bed, handling her with a thrilling dominance. “No one else will touch you.” He pulled off her makeshift boots and unfastened her leather wrap, the cool chamber air hitting her heated skin and tightening her nipples. Starla plucked at his lapels, eager to touch him. “You may originate from their planet, but my research says the Lokans won’t recognize your claim,” she argued, her words spoken more for herself than Chrome, as his core programming was fixed. 8
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“They’re suspicious of technology. Bocc has to claim me. The tribe won’t accept me if he doesn’t.” “He won’t touch you.” Chrome stripped off his suit, revealing a broad, hairless chest rippling with muscles, narrow tanned hips and a large curved cock perfectly designed to fit her body. Starla licked her lips and rolled onto her stomach, eager to have that cock inside her. “They have to accept me, Chrome. After years of study, we finally have our chance to see the culture, to live in their village and to talk to the elders.” Excitement bubbled up within her. “And this is more than a research trip, much more. We’re helping the Lokans fight the Balazoids. We’ll be part of their history. Don’t you want to save your people?” “I must protect you.” Chrome drew her hips up, angling her body in the traditional submissive pose, her ass in the air and her pussy open to him. This is how Bocc, the Federation operative, will take me. She shivered with anticipation. Like an animal. “Bocc won’t harm me.” She gripped the soft sheets and arched her back. “He’s like you.” “His cock is larger.” Chrome prodded her pussy with his broad tip, his tentative taps drawing more moisture from her core. “I don’t know if I can handle larger.” Starla forced a laugh. “Or if I can fuck a complete stranger. You and I have been together for so long, Chrome. It’ll feel like cheating.” “You will not fuck a complete stranger.” Chrome pushed his cock head past her pussy lips and paused, allowing her body to adjust to his invasion. “You’re right.” Bocc’s not a complete stranger. Chrome’s his robotic twin, and if I’m attracted to Chrome, I’ll be attracted to Bocc. Will he be attracted to me? Starla tensed, a lifetime of rejection, of being ignored, weighing upon her.
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Chrome thrust into her and she cried out, his long, hard shaft filling her completely. “Relax, Professor.” He covered her spine with his chest, his body warm and comforting. “I have you.” He sucked on her shoulder, his lips tugging on her skin, branding her with his touch. “Yes.” He has me. Starla swayed back, taking him deeper, his hips pressing against her ass. “You won’t leave me. You won’t reject me.” “Never.” Chrome nudged her brown curls over her shoulder and the tendrils bounced against her breasts, teasing her nipples. “I’ll be with you.” He dragged his hot mouth over the back of her neck, sending shivers of sensation across her form. “Always.” Always. “Then fuck me hard like a Lokan would, Chrome. Claim me as yours.” “I am a Lokan.” Chrome withdrew, his cock head skimming her pussy walls. “And you are mine.” He slammed back into her. She gasped, her body rocking forward. Chrome drove into her again and again, riding her relentlessly, his rhythm perfectly constant and his depth uniform. Starla panted, holding on to the sheets, her nipples rubbing against the smooth fabric, and as Chrome drove forward, she pushed back, their bodies smacking together, her skin heating with the contact, the pain spiraling her passions higher. Starla closed her eyes and imagined it was a real man fucking her, a man who had chosen to love her, not an android obeying his programming. Bocc will love me. I’ll be the perfect Lokan mate and he’ll want me. She undulated under Chrome’s hard muscles. He’ll claim me forever. Skin slapped against synthetic skin and the scent of her arousal filled the air. “Yes. Yes. Yes,” Starla called out, arching her back, taking Chrome deeper, harder, her fingers twisting in the sheets, ripping, tearing at the fabric. She needed more. She wanted more. She slid her hand along her stomach, threaded her fingers through her curls and found her clit. “Now, Chrome.” He rammed his cock into her, a jet of compressed air spurting from his tip, and Starla tapped her clit, the contact stimulatingly sharp. 10
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“Chrome!” She screamed his name and clenched down upon his shaft, keeping him in place. Her world exploded into a spectrum of colors and she writhed against the bed, waves of raw emotion sweeping over her. Chrome held her, securing her, as her turbulent feelings subsided. “That was good.” She rested her cheek on the bed, a satisfied smile curling her lips. “Wasn’t it?” Doubt fluttered in her stomach. “Did I respond as a Lokan female would? Did I please you?” “You pleased me, Professor.” Chrome pulled out of her languid body. “Good.” She rolled onto her back and tugged the leather wrap around her torso, tucking the edges into the bodice. “I wouldn’t want to—” The ship shuddered and the beverage container on the bedside table crashed to the floor, smashing into pieces, the tiny fragments skating across the tile. “The blockers!” Have we secured them properly? Starla sprang off the bed, stuffed her feet into her looser Federation boots and ran through the door. “Farpus.” Captain Zeemus’ panicked voice, originating from the bridge, boomed down the corridor. “You Balazoid bastards! What’s your warship doing in this sector? Of all the rotten luck…” The floor shook beneath Starla’s feet. She swayed and Chrome put a protective arm around her waist, steadying her against his naked body. “Farpus the Federation’s transportation budget,” the captain muttered as the ship jerked. “I’m switching to hyperdrive to lose you Balazoid bastards.” “Hyperdrive.” Not good. Starla rushed into the small laboratory. The ceiling-high shelving unit tilted over the metallic counter, attached to the wall by three flimsy cords, assorted containers scattered over the floor. “Chrome, the blockers.” She picked her way through the debris, expensive machinery strewn around her. Her android opened the sturdy storage unit and scanned the contents. “All of the blockers are secured and accounted for.”
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She breathed a sigh of relief. “Good. We—” The ship shot forward, the force of the acceleration flinging Starla into the air. A heavy weight flattened her, pinning her body to the hard floor as machinery and containers crashed around her. “Chrome.” She gazed into her android’s rugged face, his muscular form safeguarding her from harm. Jagged shards of glass stuck out of his synthetic skin. Arcs of unrestrained energy danced over his shoulders. “I’ll protect you, Professor,” he assured her, his voice flat. The ship stabilized, the floor beneath them leveling. “I know you will.” Starla cupped his tan-colored cheeks. What would I do without you? “We’re in hyperdrive.” Her serene voice belied her inner alarm. This isn’t in the plan. “What does that mean?” “We have accelerated.” Chrome’s blank eyes stared back at her. “According to my calculations, we’ll arrive at Lokan at 0600 hours.” “A day early.” She dropped her hands. “Can we be ready a day early?” “There’s insufficient time to load six hundred Balazoid blockers into my frame.” Chrome stood, brushing an energized cable aside, blue sparks illuminating the darkened room. “We’ll have to try.” Starla grasped his extended hand, allowing him to pull her upright. “An entire civilization depends upon us.”
***** Bocc twisted the massive auger into the hard ground, grunting with the exertion, the night air lifting the perspiration off his bare back. Deeper. Currents rippled over his body and every hair stood on end. Must drill deeper. Each rotation brought him closer to Lokan’s energized core, increasing the power to the mortar.
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He removed the auger and leaned it carefully against the rock to clean later. “Let this work,” he murmured. Bocc fed the wire-wrapped metal bar down the hole deeper and deeper until it hit bottom. He turned to his machine, took a deep breath and pressed the activation button. The engine hummed, converting the planet’s natural source of energy. The mortar vibrated and Bocc held on to the pieced-together metal, steadying it. A boom sounded. Around him, birds squawked and leaves rustled as wild animals fled. Sparks flew, illuminating the machine even more, and the water-filled canister launched into the sky, flying toward one of the moons. It didn’t fly high enough, arching over a nearby tree. Baktot’s balls. Bocc scowled as he pressed the button, stopping the engine. More drilling. He pulled the metal bar up by the wire. “Bocc. Bocc.” The thunder of booted feet on grass-packed ground announced his older brother’s arrival. “You’re late.” Bocc straightened, wiping his dirty hands on his thighs with jerky motions, irritated at his failure. “You live too far from the village,” Tukbar grumbled, his face lit by the torches circling them. “The old crone is dead. Father has forgotten. There’s no need for you to live here.” The chief has not forgotten. He’ll never forget. “That wonderful woman you call an old crone raised me, teaching me everything I know.” Bocc glanced at the stars his foreign adoptive mother had once traveled among, picturing the fantastic cities and the wonderful machinery she had woven into his childhood stories. “And the distance from my hut to the village hasn’t changed from your last visit.” “I know.” His brother kicked a scrap of twisted metal. Bocc grimaced as it ricocheted off the water pump. “I’m late because I wished to bring you your share of the kill.” Tukbar’s lips turned downward, his silver eyes stormy. The indigo antlers of the fallen baktot were plaited into his long black braid. 13
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“The chief denied me,” Bocc concluded, his voice devoid of the disappointment he felt. “As was his right, Tukbar. I’m an outcast.” And I always will be. He extracted his sword from the leather sheath. “You were a member of our hunting party and it was your spear that downed the baktot.” Tukbar waved his own sword, the finely honed blade crafted by Bocc as a birthday gift. Bocc shook his head, unwilling to revisit a lifelong argument. “I only wounded the animal. You killed it.” He juggled his weapon from his right hand to his weaker left as he circled Tukbar, the brother who even as a boy had defied their father, the chief, to befriend him. “You’ll be our future chief.” “If the gods are willing.” Tukbar pivoted on his heels, keeping Bocc in sight. “And you’ll be?” A Federation operative and Lokan’s best hope of survival. Bocc bent his knees, lowering his torso. “The warrior who defeated our future chief.” He sprang, slicing downward with his sword. Metal clanged against metal as the blades met. Tukbar groaned, his bulging biceps quivering under the strain of blocking the blow. Bocc bounced backward. He shook his left arm, his muscles aching. Still too weak. Bocc flattened his lips, disgusted at his vulnerability. And only two days left. “Again.” Bocc pressed forward, swinging his sword toward his brother’s heaving chest. Sparks flew as the blade was caught once more, both of Tukbar’s hands clasping the obstructing sword’s hilt. Bocc leaned into the connection, leveraging his body weight. His left wrist burned. His scarred knuckles whitened. Perspiration streamed over his eyebrows, dripping into his eyes, the salt stinging him. Too weak. He twisted away, turning, his sword slicing through the cool night air.
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“These last days, we’ve fought. We’ve hunted. We’ve fought some more.” Tukbar fell to his knees upon the grass-packed ground. “Have mercy on me, brother.” “You wish to be chief,” Bocc pointed out as he flexed his wrist. “That’s what I fight for.” His brother nodded. “And you? Why do you push yourself?” Bocc glanced upward. The stars sparkled in the black sky. She is among them, the female the Federation future-benders predict I will love for all time. “You train for your sky mate?” Tukbar snorted, stabbing the soil with his sword. “You build a weapon to fight an enemy we’ve never seen and you train to win a female you don’t know exists.” He shook his head, the antlers rattling in his long braid. “And they say you are the clever one.” “She exists.” I must be ready for her arrival. Bocc shifted his sword to his rested right hand. “Are you here to fight or to natter on like an old female?” he taunted. “We are to fight again? By the sky, you’re a baktot’s behind.” Tukbar rammed his sword tip into the ground and pushed his big body upright by the hilt. Bocc grimaced, appalled by Tukbar’s harsh use of his weapon. “You’d fight better if your blade was sharp.” His brother grinned at him, his round cheeks creasing. “I fight well enough to defeat you.” While hindered. Bocc rotated his sword, the blade singing through the air. Forward only. He charged. Their swords clashed, the noise ringing like thunder. Resisting the urge to bounce back, Bocc leveraged off his weapon, and with a roar of exertion, flipped himself into the air over Tukbar’s right shoulder. He landed with a thud on the ground, the impact jarring his knees. “You jump around too much,” his brother complained, turning to face him. “You’re making me dizzy.”
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“Ahhh…was that why you appeared so lightheaded last night?” Bocc laughed. “Because you jumped around the fire with sweet Minarb?” “Were you lurking in the shadows again? I thought I smelled your stench.” Tukbar’s tanned face flushed a dark red. “And that was dancing, you fool. Minarb rewarded me with a roll on the furs.” In two nights, I will roll on the furs with my Little Star. Bocc glanced toward the night sky. “Minarb’s too young to be rolling on the furs.” He sniffed the air and frowned, smelling the female on his brother’s skin. “You dishonor her by mating before claiming her.” “She’s not so young, little brother.” Tukbar’s gaze slid from his. “She’ll be claiming age this rainy season and she wished for the rolling.” Little Minarb is all grown up? “Her father should guard her closer.” I’ll guard my Little Star well. Bocc attacked. No males will touch her. Their swords sliced through the air, engaging and disengaging in a blur of motion. As Tukbar swung widely, Bocc ducked under his arm, racing forward. Success. “Careful, brother, or you’ll end up on the tip of a sword.” “I’m the future chief.” Tukbar shrugged, turning. “And the best warrior. Her father wouldn’t dare.” The second best warrior. “Future chief or not, I’ll slay you if you touch my mate,” Bocc warned his flirtatious brother. His fingers tightened on his sword hilt. “You’d slay your only brother over your mythical sky mate?” Tukbar’s lips twitched. “Who would then help you fight your mythical enemy?” “I’m serious, Tukbar.” Bocc approached him, determined to settle this before his mate’s arrival. “I won’t have you touching her.” “I vow I won’t.” Tukbar dropped his sword and held up his hands, a silly grin plastered across his face. “I won’t touch your mythical sky mate.” He chuckled. “Tukbar…”
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“I vow.” He leaned over, bracing his hands on his thighs, and roared with laughter. Bocc sheathed his sword. “Why do I tell you anything? You never listen.” He shook his head and grinned, unable to remain angry with his brother. “Come.” He held out his hand. Tukbar clasped it, tears of mirth rolling down his cheeks. “Let us quench our thirst before we fight some more.” “Minarb’s father serves the best ale.” Tukbar’s eyes glimmered with mischief. “You roll on the furs with his daughter and then drink his ale. You’re hopeless, my brother.” Bocc patted Tukbar’s back. “And you know I cannot enter his hut.” His brother’s face darkened. “He’s willing to risk Father’s wrath.” “I won’t extend my shame to your tribesmen.” Soon I’ll have my own tribe. Bocc glanced at the stars. I’ll no longer drink alone. “Besides, I need someone to share my Ungarian ale with me.” “You have more of that vile liquid?” Tukbar wrinkled his nose. “Could you not trade your gadgets for meat? Or for swords? Or for anything else but Ungarian ale?” Bocc laughed.
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Chapter Two “Farpus.” Captain Zeemus swore. “A Balazoid warship has entered the quadrant. Get that flat ass moving, Professor,” he bellowed. “Yes. Yes.” Starla slid the last tube into Chrome’s chest rack and closed the cavity, the overlapping synthetic skin concealing the seam. “We’re done.” She wiped her fingers across her burning eyes, fighting exhaustion. “Chrome.” “I’m ready, Professor.” He fastened his medical suit, his movements unhampered by the additional weight of the tubes and his functions unaffected by the lack of sleep. The android handed her the smaller medical pack and swung the larger one onto his back. “This is it.” Starla summoned up a weak smile. The medical pack’s straps dug into her shoulders, the contents including as many supplies as it would hold. “We’re as prepared as we can be.” She placed her trembling hand in Chrome’s larger palm. Is my secondhand knowledge good enough? She took a ragged breath, fear coiling around her. “I’ll protect you.” Chrome gripped her fingers tightly as they walked toward the shuttle bay. “Run, Professor!” Captain Zeemus’ bearded face appeared in the corridor, poking through the doorway. “The Balazoid warship is in our solar system.” The enemy. Starla propelled herself forward, forcing her weary legs to move. Chrome, with his longer limbs and unlimited energy, jogged easily beside her. “Finally.” Zeemus cupped her ass and pushed her toward the body-sized circular opening. Starla bit back her revulsion as all four of his hands lingered on her curves.
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“Don’t touch her.” Chrome shoved the smaller man away from her and the captain’s back smacked against the wall. Her android stalked after him, his big hands clenched into fists. “Not now, Chrome.” Starla grabbed his arm. “There’s no time. The Balazoids are close and we have to get to the surface.” Chrome stopped, glanced at her and then back at Zeemus. His forehead wrinkled. “If I fall off the ladder, I’ll die,” she pointed out. “Keeping me safe is your first directive.” “I’ll protect you.” He nodded curtly. “I’ll kill him when I return.” “If you return…” The captain muttered. Another threat. Sirens sounded and Starla forced her attention back to their disembarkation. “I’ll go first. Those were the instructions. The Lokans are less likely to attack a female.” I’m babbling. An experienced professor wouldn’t babble. Starla clamped her mouth shut and peered into the gap. Sweet study. She couldn’t see anything, the rope ladder disappearing into the mist. She lowered her ass onto the floor and dangled her feet in the air, her stomach twisting with nerves. I can do this. She grabbed the rail and swung her legs toward the ladder. Her feet slipped on the rungs, sliding off the narrow slats into nothing. “No.” She clung to the rope, her wrists burning with the strain, her knuckles aching. “Chrome.” He encircled her wrists with his big hands, steadying her. “I have you,” Chrome rumbled. Chrome has me. Starla’s heart beat wildly. She wrapped her shaking fingers around the braided strands and slid her heels against the rung. “Stay close, Chrome.” She climbed down, finding solid purchase with one foot before moving the other. Sweat trickled along her spine. “Just as we practiced.”
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“This descent is deviating from practice. The notification to the operative stated our arrival as tomorrow,” Chrome stated, placing his heels on the rung above her fingers. I’ll be alone. “I can’t think about that now.” Starla concentrated on moving from rung to rung. No, not alone, never alone. Chrome swayed on the ladder above her, his proximity reassuring her. Mist swirled around them, limiting their visibility. Creatures called around them, but she couldn’t see them. She couldn’t see anything other than Chrome’s legs and boots and the piece of ladder she gripped. Wind whistled through feathers and a black form swooped closer. Starla cringed against the ladder. “Is that a bird of prey?” “That’s a female mul-mul, guarding her nest.” Chrome eased her concerns. “Mul-muls eat seeds and nuts,” she recited as she maneuvered down the rope ladder. “They’re huge but harmless.” An animal screeched, and leaves rustled. Harmless. Nothing to fear. A thump echoed above her and the rope jerked. “What was that?” She glanced upward. “The captain closed the hatch.” Chrome’s voice was flat. Why would he close the hatch? Is he planning to— The roar of spaceship engines thundered, deafening her. Wind whipped around them. “Move, Chrome.” She descended faster and faster, the big android keeping pace with her. They needed to— A blast boomed, the sky lit up with a giant explosion, the heat and force dissipating the mist, and they fell, holding on to a ladder no longer attached to a ship. Debris hurtled by them. “Chrome!” Starla screamed, flailing her arms and legs, trying to grasp on to something, anything to stop her freefall toward the ground. Too far. Too far to fall.
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Strong, sure arms wrapped around her. Chrome. He rounded his shoulders, folding her into his body, created a cage of protective flesh around her. He has me. A calmness settled upon Starla. I won’t die alone. Tree limbs battered Chrome’s manufactured form, jarring their bodies. The scent of crushed leaves and spiced bark filled her nostrils. She rested her cheek against his chest and closed her eyes, Chrome’s artificial body heat soothing her, his comforting presence allowing her to meet death with dignity. A pain sliced through her skull, bright colors exploded on her eyelids and her world went black.
***** Bocc ran into the village, his heart pounding, his body covered with perspiration. The explosion had been seen clear across the valley. A starship. Not hers. It can’t be hers. It’s a day early. It can’t be. “Were there any survivors?” he asked, not expecting a response from the Lokans milling around him. Although the males resembled him with their blue-black hair tied back in braids, their faces tanned from years spent in the sun and their eyes an identical silver, they belonged to the tribe and he didn’t. “One survivor.” Minarb braved the chief’s disapproval by answering him. The young woman stood in the concealing shadows of her family’s stone hut, her high forehead furrowed with lines and her eyes dark with emotion. She plucked at the bodice of her white leather dress. “A female.” She carelessly offered him, the outcast, more information. “We thought there were two, but the other is a machine and he is broken. They’re gathering the parts for you.” A female. My female. “Where is she?” Bocc glanced around them, eager to finally meet his mate. Minarb stared back at him, her pretty face blank. “Where is the female?” he clarified.
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“She’s in the claiming ring.” The young woman crossed her arms, the action lifting the large breasts Tukbar found so appealing. “All of the unmated males will fight for her, including your brother.” She scowled. The claiming ring. Bocc placed a hand on his sword as he strode toward the center of the village, the flattened stone path crowded with people. “I wish you well,” Minarb recklessly called after him. “If you mean to fight, I hope you’re the one to win her.” I will be the one to win her. “Let me through.” Bocc pushed past the rowdy mated males and the cheering youngsters. The ale flowed freely, every raised hand carrying a tankard, and bets were called out, his brother Tukbar’s name mentioned frequently as the favorite. This is one contest I won’t allow him to win. Bocc hopped over the wooden barrier separating the spectators from the contestants. His gaze was immediately drawn to the far end of the ring. By the gods. Bocc stared. Starla was restrained to the claiming pole, her hands drawn behind her dainty physique and attached to the intricately carved wood, the restrictive position thrusting her small chest upward. I will feast on those breasts tonight. Savage desire slammed into Bocc and his body hardened. She appeared fit and healthy and mercifully unharmed by her ordeal. An animal skin clung to his mate’s lithe form, dirt and grease smeared across the leather in a pattern as exotic as she was. Brown curls tumbled over her slight shoulders, sunrays tipping the tendrils with fire. Needing to feel her heat, Bocc moved closer. His brother’s tribesmen, not daring to publicly acknowledge their private friendship, turned their backs as he passed. Bocc ignored their snubs, strengthened by the knowledge that he was no longer alone. Starla raised her head, met his gaze, and Bocc’s breath caught. The Federation had sent him images of her as an incentive to work harder and to sacrifice more and those images hadn’t lied. Her brown eyes were as rich and dark as newly tilled soil. 22
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She was worth every sacrifice. “Mine.” Bocc threw back his head and roared his ownership to the morning sky. Other males dared to echo his claim and he growled with anger. She’s mine. “Bocc, what are you doing here?” Tukbar slapped his shoulder, his demeanor aggravatingly carefree. “I thought you were playing with that big toy of yours.” “Are you referring to the weapon I’m building to protect our planet? That big toy?” Bocc didn’t turn his head, his attention fixed on his mate. “I’ve come to collect my mate.” “Your mate?” Tukbar’s voice raised with surprise. “She, the brown-haired gift of the gods, is your sky mate?” There was a long pause. “I’m sorry, my brother.” He sounded sincerely contrite. “I would give her to you if I could, but the rules don’t allow it.” Bocc slid his gaze sideways. “You aren’t withdrawing?” He frowned. “What of your vow not to touch her?” “I didn’t know she was real when I made that vow.” Tukbar sighed, his shoulders rounding. “She is one female, Bocc. There will be another mate for you. Minarb will be claiming age this—” “I don’t wish to claim Minarb.” Bocc dismissed Tukbar’s unacceptable solution. “I will claim my sky mate and no one else.” Bocc glanced at Starla, the female the Federation future-benders predicted he’d love for a lifetime. He had obsessively studied every report he’d received on his Little Star, memorizing her likes and dislikes, reading her cleverly crafted papers on the Lokan culture, and gleaning meaning from each precious word. Over the years, she had become a part of him, she’d become his. “There are no other females for me,” Bocc declared while he wrestled with his emotions, heart-twisting, soul-binding emotions he hadn’t shared with anyone, including his fickle brother.
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“There will be other females. Trust me in this, little brother.” Tukbar fidgeted, guilt written over his broad face. “If I could, I’d spare you this pain, but our father watches.” His dark head twitched toward the spectators. The elders of the tribe surrounded the chief, the huge man decked in the richest, thickest blue furs, his graying braid decorated with antlers and feathers. Their gazes met and fury blazed in the chief’s silver eyes. He hates me. Bocc stared stoically back at the old man, not wishing to give his father the satisfaction of seeing his pain. “By the gods, Bocc. Don’t look like that,” Tukbar pleaded, his voice cracking. “I need you to understand. I have no choice. A future chief can’t withdraw.” And a future chief can’t lose…not in a fair fight. Bocc expelled air through his clenched teeth, releasing his anger. I owe him this and so much more. “Then we fight.” He held out his hand. “We fight.” Tukbar clasped it and smiled, relief reflecting in his eyes. “There are many males.” He glanced around them, his face animated, and Bocc smelled his eagerness. “None of them match our abilities.” “We should fight the others first,” Bocc suggested. “That ensures one of us will win.” Another male may defeat my brother. His mood lightened. “Yes.” Tukbar bobbed his head. “I’ll fight far from you. We’ll save our battle for last. Good fighting, my brother.” He slapped his arm once more and lumbered away, calling out challenges to the other males. Bocc chuckled and turned his head toward his Little Star, his future. She watched him, her brown eyes wide. He nodded to her and her lips curled upward, slashes of red staining her cheeks. The elderly Master hobbled out to the middle of the ring. “You fight for the female.” He gestured to Bocc’s mate and her pale skin flushed red from the tops of her boots to the flat of her small forehead. “If you lose consciousness or you surrender, your fight is over. The last male standing will claim the female.” The Master pointed to the stack of furs in the center of the ring. 24
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Claim her now. Bocc fought his desire for Starla, the scent of male lust filling his nostrils focusing his thoughts. No. I must win her first. He unsheathed his sword. The Master pressed the curly horn of the mltat to his lips and he blew, the haunting sound signaling the start of the competition. Blades swung. Bocc dodged them, blocking blows as he moved toward the edge of the pack. No one approached him and he didn’t seek out a battle, content to save his energy. Tukbar had no such conservative strategy. The reckless fool barreled through the men, fighting with a wide grin on his face. Bocc watched the action warily, his sword in his hand, prepared for an attack, as he slowly backed away. He stopped less than an arm’s length from his mate, standing protectively in front of her, ready to shield her from any flying weapons. My female. Bocc inhaled deeply and stiffened, smelling the faint trace of blood mingled with the scent of soil and leaves and a tantalizing aroma he suspected was Starla. “You’re injured!” Someone has wounded my mate! Outrage swept over him. “Where are you hurt?” “Oh. Can we talk?” his Little Star whispered back in formal Lokan, her softly spoken words crisp and precise. “Or is that against the rules?” Fuck the rules. “We can talk.” Bocc circled her, sniffing the air and scanning her small, slender body for injury. “Where is your injury?” he demanded, raw, fierce emotion making his voice gruff. “My head, I bumped it.” She shrugged, appearing unconcerned. “But never mind about that. I’m on Lokan in a claiming ring. I’m actually here.” She smiled at him as though she had imparted starling news, her face as radiant as the sun. “You don’t recall arriving here?” Has my mate damaged her senses? Bocc transferred his sword to his left hand and gently parted her hair with his right. She dropped her head forward, instinctively submitting to his exploration. Her brown tendrils curled around his callused fingers, the strands softer than orga down.
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“Of course I do.” Starla frowned. “Well…I don’t remember landing and a little while after that but…” She inhaled sharply as he touched a small patch of pink. “You’re in pain.” Bocc glanced at the fighting men, wishing he could release her. “You should be resting.” “I’m fine.” She lifted her chin proudly. “My skull’s a little tender, but my wound isn’t anything major. My vision is clear. I have full control of my fine-motor functions.” She wiggled her fingers. They were so small…and filthy, her face and hands covered with dirt. “I’ll survive and I have tablets and supplies in my medical pack, wherever that is.” “I’ll find your pack,” Bocc vowed, moving to stand protectively beside her. She’s an intelligent woman, he reminded himself, calming. She knows the extent of her injuries. He turned his head slightly, alternating his gaze between his exotic female and the battle before them. She’s here. His body hummed with excitement, his cock hardening. After years of waiting, she’s here. “And my android, Chrome—” My android. “I’ll find all of his parts also,” Bocc assured her, pleased she asked about his Federation-relayed gift to her. “We’ll reassemble him.” Tukbar bellowed with mock-anger, his fighting staged in front of their critical father. He battled three men—two farmers and a youngster barely old enough to enter the ring. Bocc’s brother pivoted, flicking the tip of his sword, and the youngster’s weapon flew from his hands. The two farmers turned on the boy and he raised his hands, pleading for surrender. “I have so many questions, Bocc. You’re Bocc, right? The Federation operative?” Her voice lilted musically, and he glanced at her, startled that she recognized him. Has she been waiting for me, as I have been waiting for her? “Chrome looks like you, you know, except for…” Her gaze dropped to his loincloth. His cock grew even harder under her perusal. “I’m bigger.” Bocc grinned. He watched the fighters, waiting for his competition to tire and the field of rivals to narrow. 26
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“Yes, ummm…” Her pale cheeks flushed bright red, her emotions pleasingly easy to read. “I thought you were him when you entered the ring.” Starla scanned the boisterous crowd, a wistful expression on her beautiful face. “We’re never apart, you see. He’s always with me, answering my questions.” She squirmed against her bindings, her body rocking against the pillar. “And being alone wasn’t part of my plan.” “You’re not alone,” Bocc reminded her. “You’ve never been alone and I can answer all of your questions.” “You have time to talk with me?” She tilted her head, her brown curls sliding over her skin. “Shouldn’t you be fighting? If you are to claim me, that is.” Starla gazed at the battle, her exotic eyes wide with wonder. “I thought there would be two or three men fighting for me but this is unbelievable.” She shook her head. “To have so many men wishing to claim one unremarkable female…” My Little Star isn’t an unremarkable female. Bocc perused her freckled face with pride. “They fight for no purpose, as I’ll be the male to claim you.” Soon. “But there isn’t a need to join them, not yet.” He inched closer until he felt the heat of her body. “I’ll let the others tire themselves out and then battle the victor.” Starla laughed, the sound filling him with joy. “Smart.” He nodded his acknowledgement of the compliment, pleased that his human mate valued intelligence more than brawn. She’s perfect for me. Needing to touch her, Bocc reached behind the pillar and captured both of her bound hands easily within one of his palms. He inhaled sharply as a bolt of awareness raced up his arm straight to his heart. She stilled, her arousal sharpened with the bitter scent of fear. I frighten her. Bocc’s stomach twisted. Because she doesn’t know me, he reassured himself. Not yet. “You’re safe with me, Little Star.” His voice deepened. “And I’ll ensure no one else touches you.” “Am I safe with you?” She searched his face, her brown eyes flecked with gold.
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Bocc held her gaze, allowing her to read all of his emotions. “I’ll never hurt you.” He brushed her soft skin with his calloused thumb, touching her lightly, gently, lovingly. I must woo her slowly. “Trust me.” She trembled and her breathing quickened. “Chrome trusts you. He claims you’re the most intelligent humanoid in all of the Federation.” Her lips curled up into a shy smile. “He might be a bit biased.” Bocc stroked along the curve of her arm and circled the dimple at her elbow, enchanted by her smooth skin. “I created him that way.” He grinned. She nodded, her brown curls bouncing against her cheekbones. “You created him for this mission, to help you save your planet.” I created him to keep you safe. Bocc remained silent, exploring her shoulder with his fingertips. “That’s also why I’m here…to help you.” The color on her cheekbones deepened and she looked away. “I know you need to…” Starla nodded at the stack of furs. “I must cover you with my scent,” Bocc explained and her blush spread down her slender neck. He yearned to lick her pink flesh. Slowly, I must move slowly. “So all of the males know you’re mine.” He gripped his sword hilt hard with his left hand and caressed his mate lightly with his right. “For the mission?” She peeked at him from under lowered lashes, her expression sweetly shy and demure. “For as long as you remain on Lokan.” And you will never leave. Bocc followed the indent of her delicate collarbone, pausing above the curve of her breast, aching to touch that soft flesh. “And if I—” Her eyes widened. “Bocc!” He turned on his booted heels and swung his sword, disarming his challenger with one smooth strike. His rival’s heavy hammer thumped to the ground. Bocc breathed heavily, his heart pounded. Too close.
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“Mercy!” The big man held his hands up, palms facing him. “Granted,” Bocc replied brusquely and the man scrambled out of the ring. Baktot’s balls. I have to concentrate. “We’ll talk later.” Bocc took one last long look at the female he fought for and she ducked her head, her curls falling forward, partially shielding her beautiful face. He nodded curtly and strode determinedly toward his brother Tukbar and Lork, the village’s metal wielder, his two remaining rivals. I will win her.
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Chapter Three I want him. Starla pressed her lips together to keep from sighing her appreciation as Bocc walked away from her. The muscles in his back rippled and his long black braid, unadorned by feathers, bones or any other symbols of status, swung over a tightly clenched ass, the defined flesh barely concealed by a skimpy skin-colored loincloth. Bocc slapped the smaller man’s shoulder and his full lips curled up into a smile, affection reflected on his broad face. He looked over his shoulder and their gazes met, Starla’s breath catching as his silver eyes flashed with raw need. He wants me. Her toes curled in her Lokan-style skin boots. This smart, sexy man wants me. Starla lifted her chin proudly. Bocc turned his attention to the big man before them. His lips moved while the crowd around them cheered exuberantly, drowning out their quiet conversation. Large males, with coloring similar to Bocc’s, clanked together tankards of black liquid, their gazes alternating between the three remaining fighters and her restrained form. See, but don’t be seen. Starla pressed back against the wooden pole and rounded her shoulders, trying to fade into the surroundings like a good researcher would. Be like the tribe you’re observing. She looked down at her dirty wrap dress, confirming that it was similar to the dresses she’d seen the other females wear. The males continued to gape at her, their silver eyes wide, their big hands waving. They had tankards of some sort of liquid in their hands. What is the name of that liquid? She frowned, unable to remember. Chrome would know. I’ll ask Bocc later. Starla concentrated on the impending battle, noting the lack of armor and the sharpness of the swords. Claiming Rituals Of The Lokans. She wiggled excitedly, anticipating the enthusiastic response of the drama-hungry Federation academics to her next action-packed paper. 30
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The smaller man’s head tilted toward Bocc and he nodded. Bocc and the smaller man changed positions, Bocc’s face grim and focused, the smaller man laughing. The big man, a brute with arms like tree trunks, shifted from his left foot to his right, as though unsure of whom to attack. Bocc moved first, swinging his sword at the man’s left shoulder. The big man brought his right sword arm across his body to block. Blade met blade, the metal sparking. Bocc bounced back, surprisingly light on his skin-wrapped feet. The big man pursued him, grunting as he heaved his weapon, the blade slicing toward Bocc. Starla gasped. Bocc caught the blade with his sword and held, his biceps bulging, sweat beading on his large forehead. The brute leaned more and more weight on his weapon and Bocc grunted, his knees bending, his body lowering. The razorsharp tip of his rival’s blade neared his chest, that wide expanse of exposed tanned skin. He can’t lose. Starla’s heart leapt. He can’t. “Bocc!” She struggled against her bindings, the leather digging into her skin. “Bocc!” The smaller man glanced at her and yelled something, his words concealed by the shouting of the bloodthirsty crowd. Bocc twitched his head. The smaller man grasped the hilt of his sword with both hands and yanked his blade upward. The other swords flew into the air. Bocc caught his sword. The smaller man caught the big brute’s weapon. The bigger man put his hands in the air, backing away. The smaller man held the defeated opponent’s sword in the air triumphantly and the crowd roared their approval. Even the disapproving man in the blue furs nodded, his gray braid cluttered with antlers and brightly colored feathers, testimony to his great rank. Bocc juggled his sword from his left hand to his right and stalked behind his prancing rival. He wouldn’t. Starla sucked in her breath. Not while— Bocc rammed his sword hilt down on the smaller man’s skull. The man looked up at him with stunned disbelief before he collapsed onto the ground.
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He would. Silence hung heavily around them. The spectators stared, their mouths dropped open in disbelief. Bocc pivoted on his feet and rushed toward her. He would do anything to achieve his goals. She shrank back. I can’t trust him. Bocc flinched as though she had struck him and his face hardened with resolve. He didn’t say anything as he sliced through her bindings, freeing her and the tongues of the spectators. She fell forward over his shoulder, his skin hot and moist, his scent of man and rich, dark earth. One man booed, followed by another, and another, until the air seethed with discontentment. Bocc ignored them, carrying her to the middle of the ring, his fingers spread over her thighs. This is the maker Chrome idolizes. Starla placed her hands on his back, her fingertip tingling with the returning circulation. He’s a Federation operative and one of the most intelligent men in all of the galaxies. “Why did you strike him from behind?” “I killed my own mother, Little Star.” Bocc stated it as though it were a fact. “I’m an outcast, capable of anything.” He laid her down gently on the furs, his gaze not meeting hers. He’s an outcast? Starla glanced around them at the angry tribesmen, tribesmen she needed to gain the trust of. I’m the mate of an outcast. Sweet study. This is a mess. She looked up at Bocc, his eyes turbulent with emotion and his face painfully blank. This is his life. He’s been alone. If not for Chrome, I’d also be alone. “I’m an outcast too,” she confessed. “And you didn’t kill your mother. Your mother died giving birth to you.” She reached out to him, his body remaining beyond her grasp. “Tell me why. I want to know.” Bocc sighed, his broad chest rising and falling. “My brother Tukbar is the future chief. Future chiefs don’t lose battles to village outcasts.” He clasped her left hand, frowning at the red marks around her wrist. “So you sacrificed your honor to save his.” The booing had died down. Starla turned her head. Not everyone had left. The older man in the blue furs glared at Bocc, his face dark with disgust. 32
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Bocc followed her gaze and his square chin jutted. The man immediately turned away, his long braid swinging. “The chief,” Bocc explained. His father. “When we succeed at this mission, you’ll have the respect of the Federation. Surely then the tribe will accept you.” And accept me. “They’ll never accept me.” Bocc crushed her hopes. “I only need your respect.” He pressed his mouth against the marks, licking the redness, his tongue soft and warm. “And my own.” He laid his cheek against her fingertips. “Your head pains you. Your wrists are scraped. Do you hurt anywhere else, Little Star?” He wants to fuck me. Starla’s toes curled. “No.” She took a deep breath, counted to five and exhaled. Research, this is research for another paper. Mating Rituals of the Lokans. “I’m ready.” “Good.” Bocc placed her hand gently by her side, untied her wrap dress and rolled her over, the air cool on her bare skin. “Let’s do this quickly.” His loincloth dropped to the ground beside her. Quickly. Starla closed her eyes, spread her legs and tilted her ass toward him. Sweet study. This is it. Without another kiss or caress, he’ll mount me from behind, ram that big cock into my tight pussy and rut with me like an animal would, taking me again and again until I scream his name. Her pussy moistened and her body throbbed with a desire that had nothing to do with completing the mission or researching Lokan. I want this. He lowered his body onto hers, burying his large cock between her ass cheeks, his body warm and heavy, and she jerked at the contact. “Easy,” he murmured into her ear, his voice impossibly low and deep. “I need to cover you with my scent.” He slowly rubbed his skin against hers, bracing his weight with one arm and stroking her hip with his freed hand, his palms callused and rough. He isn’t fucking me? Starla dismissed that aggravating thought as his cock slid against her spine, his pre-cum soaking into her skin. No, he’ll fuck me. She smiled into the animal hide. This is more than a mission to him. He wants me.
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“You’re so soft, Little Star.” Bocc mouthed her earlobe, nibbling on her flesh, and she moaned, undulating underneath him. “So small.” He moved over her, his chest brushing against her back, his hips pressing against her ass, their legs entwined. She felt dainty and delicate, trapped under his huge body, protected by his muscles. Starla dug her fingertips into the leather, frustrated by her inability to see or touch him, the man she’d heard so much about. “I need to touch you, Bocc.” “No.” He raised his body and cooler air surged between them, dousing her rising desire. Bocc turned her to face him. “Touching me isn’t needed.” His silver eyes had darkened to black under his thick eyebrows and his left cheek ticced with emotion. Isn’t needed or isn’t wanted? She gazed up at him, feeling confused and insecure. Doesn’t he want me to touch him? “I want—” Bocc covered his lips with hers, severing her words, grazing her flesh with his sharp teeth, gently pushing her head back against the fur. She gasped, clinging to his shoulders, and he claimed her open mouth, exploring her with his long, thick tongue as he rubbed his chest upon her breasts, teasing her nipples into aching tautness. She bent her knees, cradling him between her thighs, and he stroked over her, his shaft skimming along her wet pussy lips, fucking her without entry. He tasted of meat cooked over an open fire and he smelled of the outdoors, earthy and natural, the combination appealing to Starla in ways a manufactured scent never could. He’s like Chrome. She wrapped her arms around him tighter, drawing him closer to her. Only better. Bocc alternated his up and down strokes with crushing circles, grinding the rim of his cock against her clit, sending shockwaves of desire over her body. She moaned into his mouth, her vast vocabulary reduced to guttural sounds, all of the intelligence she was noted for liquefied. In his arms, she wasn’t a professor, known for her brain and nothing else. She was a desirable woman and she needed him inside her.
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She pushed up with her hips, smacking her skin against his, and he nuzzled her cheek, dry humping her faster and faster. “Easy. It’ll soon be done,” he grunted, his voice sinfully deep. It’ll soon be done? “No, Bocc, no.” She dug her short, blunt fingernails into his tanned skin. “Bocc, please.” He thrust forward, threw back his head and roared, spilling his hot cum on her flat stomach. Son of a specimen dish. Starla gritted her teeth in frustration, holding him as his shudders diminished, his satisfaction left as a visible thing on her flesh, his seed coating her coiled-tight body. He reached between them with his big rough hand and rubbed his cum into her skin, the heel of his hand grazing her clit, tormenting her even more. “I have to do this so all of the males know you’re mine.” “Completing this portion of the mission.” With minimal contact. He didn’t want me. He was doing his job. Starla pushed at his shoulders, unable to tolerate more of his touching, and Bocc rocked back on his heels, his wide forehead furrowed. “I need Chrome.” Chrome will love me. Bocc reattached his loincloth, his movements jerky, his impressive cock now limp. “You need me.” I need him too much. Starla gazed at his muscular chest, unable to meet his gaze, knowing he’d seen the wanting in her face. The mission, concentrate on the mission. She inhaled deeply, the scent of one-sided sex mocking her efforts at composure. “Chrome has the Balazoid blockers.” Bocc grunted a word Starla didn’t understand, her lack of knowledge escalating her irritation. He wrapped a clean animal hide so tightly around her body she struggled for breath, and he swung her effortlessly into his arms. “That’s all you need him for.” “And that’s all you need me for,” she mumbled into his skin. “I understand.” Now.
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Bocc shifted impatiently as his small mate laid the android’s pieces out on the ground. “This can wait. I wish to show you our home.” He looked toward the house he’d spent years expanding and modernizing for her. “This can’t wait,” Starla snapped, lines etched between her finely arched eyebrows. “A Balazoid warship blew up the ship I was on, so the invasion fleet has to be close behind and your warriors will need a day to recover from the blocker.” She tapped the android’s chest cavity, revealing racks of tubes. “This, at least, survived the drop.” “As I designed it to.” He bent and clicked one of Chrome’s legs into the socket, frowning as Starla moved farther from him. She hates me for touching her. “You needed to be covered with my scent.” “If you could have done that any other way, you would have.” She set the android’s head on the ground, her fingertips drifting over his synthetic cheek almost lovingly, and Bocc fought a surge of jealousy. “I understand.” I understand. I understand. He pressed his lips together as he picked up a mallet. She’d been saying that all day and it irritated him. I don’t understand. How could I have killed her love for me already? He tapped Chrome’s twisted right arm, taking his frustration out on the android. “This isn’t how I expected our meeting to be.” “I understand.” Her face flushed a bright pink. “And I apologize. This is my first mission and I got a little carried away, forgetting you were only doing your job.” He snapped the second leg in place and stared at Starla, unable to decipher what she had said. “You won’t…” She took a ragged breath, her small chest rising and falling. “You won’t report on this, will you?” She smoothed out the android’s bushy eyebrows. “I won’t forget again, I promise. From this point on, it is all about the mission.” Fuck the mission. “Little Star.” He caught her waving hand. “Call me Professor Black or even Professor Starla.” She pulled away from him and he let her go, smelling her fear. “That’s more professional.”
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“Professional? You’re my mate.” Bocc tilted Chrome’s torso up, struggling to steady the big android. “For the duration of the mission.” She supported Chrome under one large synthetic arm, her slim fur-wrapped form tiny in contrast. “And we completed the mating section of the plan.” Her blush spread over her bare shoulders, disappearing in her bodice. “You don’t have to touch me again.” “I will touch you again.” Bocc snapped Chrome’s head in place. “You’re mine.” He flipped open Chrome’s nape cavity and deftly connected the wires. “You’ll always wear my scent, Little Star.” He deliberately used his name for her. “Oh, right.” Starla bit into her plush bottom lip with her straight white teeth. “The scent wears off.” She caressed Chrome’s broad chest, her fingers pale and slender against the android’s dark skin. Bocc watched, fascinated, yearning for her soft touch on his body. “I didn’t think of that.” “I did.” Touching you is all that I think of. Bocc searched her downcast face for any indication that she welcomed his advances. She turned away from him, took four hesitant steps toward the forest and stared at the lush vegetation, her forehead furrowed with thought lines, her hands clenched together behind her back. He forced himself to remain silent, allowing her time to accept their bond. “If you rubbed your scent on one of the animal skins, I could wear it and you wouldn’t have to touch me,” she spoke to the massive trees. The sunlight streamed through the blue leaves and lit her brown curls. “No,” Bocc growled. He slapped the back of Chrome’s neck and the android blinked his eyes. “I’ll touch you.” He stalked to her. “I’ll be gentle, Little Star.” He wrapped his fingers around her arms. She’s so small, so frail. “I’ll control my passions,” he vowed. “Passions?” Her face tilted upward and the back of her head rubbed against his chest, her hair softer than anything he’d ever experienced. Their gazes met and he 37
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sucked in his breath. By the gods, her eyes dazzled him, every shade of brown from the finest gold to deepest black reflected in their depths. He leaned over her and her lips parted. “Don’t touch her.” Chrome’s cold voice cut through the tender moment and Bocc bellowed as he was torn away from Starla. He landed with a hard thump on the ground, dust billowing up around him. Baktot’s balls. My android’s strong. The reactivated android stood between him and his mate, his big arms crossed, his bare feet braced apart. Bocc shook his head, his chest heaving with both pride and irritation. “I’m Bocc, your maker.” “You are my maker,” Chrome confirmed. “You won’t touch her. This is your first warning.” Starla gazed at the android with an open admiration, irking Bocc. She should look at me that way. He stood, clenching his fingers into fists. “Review core programming.” “I’ll remain by Professor Starla Black’s side at all times,” Chrome recited. “I’ll protect Professor Starla Black from harm. I won’t allow any other male to touch Professor Starla Black. I’ll—” “Enough.” Bocc swept his hand over his head. “I’m supposed to be the exception.” Starla chewed on that full bottom lip he had been seconds away from devouring. “Maybe this is for the best. We can transfer your scent without touching and—” “I am touching you, Little Star.” Bocc circled the android. Chrome moved to maintain his protective stance in front of Starla. “Once I deactivate Chrome, I’ll show you how gentle I can be.” “And if I don’t want you to be gentle?” she murmured, her voice barely audible over the chattering of the forest creatures. “What?” Bocc’s body hardened. Starla didn’t answer and she avoided his gaze, her pale skin flush with color. “By the gods, woman,” he roared. “I’ll deactivate him quickly.”
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He rushed Chrome. Chrome flung his big hand out, swatting him away. “Baktot’s balls.” He smacked against the side of his home, his back connecting with the hard stone, the impact slamming the breath out of his lungs. “Bocc!” Starla’s voice cut through his concussive stupor. “Let me go.” Chrome held her as she struggled to reach him. She cares. Bocc grinned and wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, its metallic taste coating his tongue. He rose to his feet and shook his body. His joints cracked and he grimaced at the pain. “Bocc, no,” she protested. “Tell me how to deactivate him. He won’t hurt me.” “You can’t deactivate him.” Bocc edged around Chrome, looking for weakness in his perfectly designed creation. “Only I can.” He vaulted toward Chrome, flipping his body into the air. For Starla. He pummeled his fists against the android’s reinforced chest. Chrome rocked back on his heels, pushed forward and Bocc flew backward, skidding along the ground, the rocky surface tearing the skin from his ass and thighs. “He’ll kill you.” Starla glared at him as though that impending death was his fault. “I’d die for you, mate.” Bocc groaned as he rose, his chest aching, his legs wobbly and unsure. Warmth pooled around his ankles. Blood scented the fresh air. Darkness hovered on the perimeters of his sight, the world seen as though through a tunnel. “You’re bleeding…badly. Is that?” Her face lost all color. “Sweet study. There’s metal sticking out of your leg, Bocc.” She looked at him and then at Chrome. “You have to give this up. He won’t let you touch me.” Her gaze returned to Bocc. “Others have tried.” “I’m not others,” he boasted, swaying on his feet. “You’re not…” Starla shook her head. “Ohhh…I can’t watch this.” She turned and walked into the forest, taking the longest path leading toward the village. Chrome followed her.
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Son of a spear. Pushing past his pain, Bocc sprinted behind his rival and smacked the back of Chrome’s neck, his fingerprint registering on the sensor. The android froze in midstep. “Come back here, Little Star,” Bocc called out to his mate, fighting the weakness clawing at his body. “I need to claim you.” She looked over her shoulder, her beautiful face compressed with concern. “I—” He fell to his knees, shards of pain jabbing up his legs. Protect mate. He held the darkness at bay with pure willpower, his mouth pulled tight in a grimace. She rushed to his side. “Stay with me, Bocc.” Starla ripped a hide off his latest invention. “What is that?” She paused. “No.” She shook her head. “Focus on your operative, Professor,” his little mate mumbled to herself. “Keep him conscious. Keep him alive.” She placed the flattened leather before him, her arm brushing his shoulder, her touch as charged as his planet’s core. “Lie down.” She pushed on his shoulders, the contact shimmering through his pain-ravaged form. “You’re Lokan. The connection with the ground will hasten your healing.” Bocc complied, slumping face-first onto the hide, inhaling the comforting scent of grease and mechanical things. He turned his head, laying his cheek on the leathercovered ground. “That is a mortar.” His voice sounded strange even to his own ears. “A mortar on a planet unable to sustain technology?” She glanced at his invention. “Can’t be. You’re delirious. My operative is delirious. He’s bleeding.” She crouched beside him, the tart aroma of her fear assailing his nostrils. “He has a piece of metal sticking out of his leg.” She touched the shard and pain shot up his leg and over his ass. “And he’s Lokan. That adds complexity.” “I’m not delirious,” he mumbled. “The mortar works with the planet, not against it. It harnesses the energized core, funneling the currents into the machine.” Bocc drew strength from the explanation, his mind clearing. “And because the energy flows into the projectiles themselves—” 40
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“They’ll immobilize the Balazoid’s force fields. I understand.” She does understand. He stared at Starla, impressed with her conclusion. “But that doesn’t help you right now.” She leaned closer, her warm breath wafting on his skin. “I can’t see anything. I need water to clean the wound.” “Water pump.” He flung his right hand out, his fingertips tingling. “Move the rod up and down.” “I see it.” Starla hurried to the hand pump, filled the bucket underneath the spout and returned, the underground river water sluicing over the sides. “Did you build that too?” “Yes.” He gritted his teeth as she splashed the cool clear liquid on his open wounds. “You should remove the metal soon.” “Because you’re healing already.” Her voice lit with wonder. “I knew you would, of course,” she assured him. “I’m the Federation’s foremost expert on Lokan anatomy.” “What Lokan’s anatomy are you an expert on?” he growled, his mood darkening. “Ummm…Chrome’s, but he assures me he’s identical to you except for…” She blushed a deep crimson as she dipped her fingers in the water and Bocc shifted as the little blood he had left in his body rushed to his cock. “The metal,” he reminded her. “Yes.” Starla placed both of her hands on the shard and tugged. He groaned, the pain breathtakingly sharp. “Sorry.” She tugged again. The metal didn’t move. Bright lights danced in front of his eyes. “It’s lodged deep in your leg.” She tried a third time. “By the gods, woman,” Bocc rumbled, unable to take any more agony. He reached behind him, closed his fingers around the shard and yanked. The metal flew out of his hands, Starla screamed and his world went black.
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Chapter Four “Chrome was deactivated. Bocc lost consciousness.” Starla rummaged through her medical pack, familiarizing herself with the contents yet again. “I’m alone, without protection. I haven’t been alone in years…if ever.” She popped a tablet for her aching head. “And I’m on a strange planet.” Starla pushed the pack away. “You wanted to see Lokan, Professor. You’re seeing Lokan.” She lifted a corner of the gauze applied to Bocc’s muscular thighs. The wound was closed, the healing flesh pink. “Damn good job, if I do say so myself. Maybe I should have been a doctor.” She skimmed her fingers over his blue-black braid. “Maybe he’d want me then.” “But he doesn’t want me.” Starla stood, unable to be near Bocc and not touch him. “Even the tribe’s outcast rejected me.” She laughed, hearing the near hysteria in the mirthless sound. “I’m the Federation’s top expert on a culture I’ll never assimilate into.” She gazed upward, following the trunk of a massive tree, the white clouds concealing the tops of the blue branches. “And if I don’t gain their trust, all of this will be destroyed.” She extended her arms. “By your people?” a voice whispered. Starla turned. A Lokan female stared at her, her silver eyes wide, her straight black hair draped over her tanned shoulders like the sheerest, softest fabric. A white animal hide clung to her generous curves and she held the remnants of a replicator in her trembling hands, the technology out of place amid the surrounding nature. The replicator is for Bocc. This beautiful creature is here to see him. The sharp shards of jealousy pierced Starla’s stomach.
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“By the Balazoids,” Starla admitted. She has a right to know what is coming. “They’ll kill the males, abduct the females and leave the planet a barren shell.” “Our warriors are mighty.” The young woman raised her chin. “They’ll fight these Balazoids.” “The Balazoids can enter your warriors’ minds. Without the blockers I’ve brought your people, they’ll be rendered unconscious before they can draw their swords.” Starla sighed, glancing back at Bocc. “He’s taken the blocker, but he’ll be one warrior against many Balazoids.” The young woman tilted her head. “He’s our second greatest warrior. Only Tukbar is more skilled.” Her voice lilted with pride. “I’m Minarb, and this is for Bocc.” She offered Starla the broken replicator. “Thank you.” Starla took the machine, unsure of what she was to do with it. “I’m Professor Starla.” “Bocc’s Little Star.” Minarb nodded gravely. “You’re certain these Balazoids will come?” “Yes.” Starla chewed on her bottom lip. “They destroyed the spaceship I was on.” “Then our warriors must take your blockers.” Without another word, the woman turned and walked off into the forest. “If only it was that easy,” Starla mumbled. “It won’t be,” a deep voice agreed. Starla glanced at Bocc. He had rolled onto his back and was watching her, his face expressionless. “Lokans aren’t open to new ideas.” He talked about his culture as though he wasn’t part of it. “This is for you.” Starla handed him the replicator. Bocc sat upright, his defined abs rippling, “The Lokans bring everything to me. They don’t trust even the remnants of technology.” He studied the electronics, his eyes lighting with intellectual curiosity, before he placed the replicator on the ground beside him.
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“Their distrust might have something to do with starships constantly exploding and crashing.” Bocc grinned at her, his white teeth vivid against his tanned face. A tingle of desire swept over Starla. “Yet Minarb brought you the replicator.” She must really love him. Starla frowned. “She’s very pretty.” “My brother Tukbar claims she’s the most beautiful female to ever exist.” Bocc chuckled, heedless of the hurt his words caused. “Come here, mate.” He reached out, his action lightning fast. His rough fingers circled Starla’s wrist and he pulled her onto his lap, the hard ridge in his loincloth pressing against her ass cheeks. “Hmmm…” He buried his face in her hair, his breath warm on her neck. He’s aroused, but it’s Minarb he truly wants. Starla wiggled, Bocc’s fierce hold on her not allowing her to flee. “We should concentrate on the mission. Chrome—” “Was deactivated.” Bocc’s grip around her waist tightened. He inhaled deeply, his chest pressing against her shoulders. “Did you wash, Little Star? I don’t smell my scent on you.” He nuzzled his nose into the base of her neck. He thinks I want to be touched…and I do, but not like this. Starla’s face heated. “I was disgustingly dirty. If you rub your scent on an animal hide—” “I’d rather rub my scent on you.” He unwrapped her makeshift leather dress and she trembled as he cupped her breast, his fingers calloused. “There’s no need to fear me, Starla. I may look like a savage, but I’ll be gentle with you.” “Fear?” she whispered with disbelief, uncertain if he was mocking her. Her nipples hardened and pleasure hummed through her body as he squeezed and molded her flesh. “I don’t fear you, Bocc.” “Don’t lie to me, mate.” He kissed her shoulder, his mouth hot and wet on her skin. “You’re shaking and your scent is sharp and tangy.” “Not with fear.” She spun in his arms to face him, her body shamelessly exposed. “At least not with the fear you’ll hurt me.”
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Bocc gazed at her, his silver eyes intense. “Then what do you fear? I’ll protect you from harm.” I fear your rejection. “I know you’ll protect me.” “I’ve always protected you.” He stroked along the slope of her cheekbone with his index finger, his touch light, and she parted her lips, wanting, needing to taste that finger. “You’re so beautiful, Little Star.” He groaned, leaning his forehead against hers, their noses brushing, their breaths mixing, theirs lips a whisper away. “Now who’s lying?” She smiled, gratified that he had offered the false flattery, no other male having ever been so considerate. Bocc frowned, looking so endearingly disgruntled that she, without thinking, tilted her head, covering his sternly set mouth with hers. He froze. What am I doing? Starla pulled back, dismayed. Bocc didn’t allow her to move far. He cupped the back of her head with one large palm and pulled her back to him, growling, the animalistic sound sending tremors of excitement down her spine. His eyes darkened with a frightening passion and he swooped down upon her mouth, devouring her lips hungrily, feasting upon her. Starla gasped and he surged into her, his tongue filling her mouth, owning her. As he searched within her, exploring, dominating her, he turned her body, allowing her legs to straddle him. They slid, fitting together, her open pussy connecting with his hardness, the contact gratifyingly savage. She slipped her fingers under his braid and grabbed his nape, rubbing her breasts against his chest as they kissed, their mouths melded together, her lips throbbing with his ownership. He squeezed her ass, moving her up and down on him, rubbing her pussy against his constrained cock. The friction amplified the want, the need inside her, her juices soaking his leather loincloth.
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“I need you, Little Star,” Bocc rumbled and he toppled her to the ground, landing hard on top of her, his chest flattening her breasts, his skin smacking against her nipples, the sharp pain shoving her closer to fulfillment. “I must have you.” He ripped away the loincloth separating them, the leather leaving a blazing trail of erotic burn across her skin. “Take me, Bocc,” Starla cried out, clutching his shoulders greedily, and she wrapped her legs around his waist, her pussy hot and wet against his cock. Bocc bombarded her neck with fierce love bites, branding her flesh, and she arched, grinding her clit against his cock head, offering more of her body to his domination. “I want to fuck you until you can’t stand, until your skin smells of me, until I’m imprinted inside of you.” “Yes,” Starla moaned, digging her fingernails into his muscles, his possessive words driving her crazy. “Fuck me hard, Bocc.” “So hard.” He prodded at her entrance with his cock head, pulled back and slammed home. She screamed, filled to the point of pain, her pussy stretched around his huge shaft. “Little Star?” Bocc stilled, his body motionless above her. “Did I hurt you?” Not enough. “Hard.” She kicked his ass with her heels. “I need it hard.” He chuckled as he obeyed, ramming into her again and again, his balls bouncing against her ass, their skin slapping together, the impact warming her hips, her thighs and her breasts. She panted, clawing at his shoulders, driving him faster and deeper, their passion more savage, more primitive than she’d ever experienced. “Bocc. Bocc. Bocc.” She chanted Bocc’s name, driving her hips upward as he thrust relentlessly into her. “Starla,” he grunted, his breathing ragged, his chest covered with the warm, wet sheen of exertion.
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Yes, Starla. I make him this crazy. Me. Starla’s pussy clenched around him, closing in on his shaft, and a high keening noise rose from her throat. Bocc drove into her, adjusting his angle, rubbing against her clit, and she broke, screaming, her fingernails puncturing his skin, her heels smacking his ass. “Starla!” Bocc roared, his back bowing as he spurted hard jets of cum into her body. He came and came and came, filling her with heat. “My mate.” He collapsed, crushing her under him. “Bocc.” She wiggled. He rolled off her, onto his back, and she stared up at the low-hanging clouds above them, stunned by the encounter. He called my name. My name. She smiled. “I’m sorry. That was inexcusable,” he snapped, self-disgust in his voice. Because he fucked me. Starla blinked back tears. “I didn’t mind.” “You should. I told you I’d be gentle and I wasn’t. I was a beast.” Bocc stood, his massive form blocking the sun. “I lost control, taking you like an animal.” He paced back and forth in front of her, gloriously naked. “And look.” He swept a big hand over his impressive erection. “I want to fuck you again, when I should be holding you, talking to you, comforting you.” She stared at him. “You want me?” “Too damn much,” he growled. “I can be gentle, Little Star. I promise.” Bocc dropped to his knees beside her. “I’ll figure out a way to control myself.” He took her hands, his grasp loose and warm. “And cherish you the way you should be cherished.” He wishes to cherish me. Starla blinked slowly, struggling with the concept. “You don’t believe me.” He released her hands, his handsome face darkening. Starla crooked her index finger around his. “I don’t believe you because no man has ever wanted to cherish me before,” she confessed, swallowing her pride. “Most men ignore me. I’m considered plain.” Her cheeks heated.
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“You’re plain?” Bocc’s dark eyebrows shot upward. “With your brown hair and even browner eyes?” His lips twitched. “You’re humoring me, Little Star.” His gaze dropped to the short curly hair covering her mons and Starla fought the urge to cover herself, allowing him to look at her. “I will control myself.” His mouth flattened. He wants me…badly, and I no longer care why. “That’s too bad.” Starla flipped onto her stomach and drew her hips upward, waving her ass in the air. “Because I need to be fucked hard, like an animal.” She looked over her shoulder. Bocc’s eyes were dark in his stoic face. A tic pulsed in his cheek. “Maybe Chrome—” “No Chrome!” Bocc roared. He grabbed her hips, positioning behind her, his tip nudging her wet pussy. No Chrome needed. Starla widened her stance to accommodate his girth, her body humming with anticipation. “Give me everything you have, Bocc.” He growled. “Everything I have is yours.” Bocc slammed into her, burying himself up to his base, the impact pushing the air from Starla’s lungs. As she struggled to catch her breath, he pulled back and drove forward again, smacking his hips against her ass. He fucked her with a thrilling intensity, his hard thrusts swaying her body, his weight grinding her knees into the soft ground. She panted, curling her fingers into the rich, dark earth, the smell of soil and sex and man filling her nostrils. Flesh slapped against flesh, and a sheen of sweat slicked their skin. Bocc’s grunts echoed in her ears. They rutted like primitive beasts with no tenderness in their joining, only an overwhelming desire to be as one. This is want. Starla pushed back against him, trying to take more of his shaft deeper and harder inside her. This is need. Her pussy throbbed from his brutal usage, her juices dripping down her thigh. “Bocc. Bocc.” She arched her back, crying out his name, begging shamelessly for more.
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He reached around her torso and grabbed her breast, his calloused grip stimulatingly tight and reassuringly possessive. “Come for me, Starla.” Bocc squeezed her curves hard, the agony escalating her arousal. “Show me this is what you want.” “Want…more,” she panted, her pussy tightening around his cock. A rumble rose from his chest, growing louder and louder until Bocc released the sound in a deafening roar. He lunged forward, ramming into her so hard he rattled her bones, and driving so deep he touched virgin flesh. As Bocc filled Starla’s pussy with his warm cum, he pinched her nipple, the sharp pain splintering her restraint. Starla shrieked, the ecstasy too much, too intense. “No. No. No.” She couldn’t bear it. She bucked, trying to dislodge him, waves of sensation overwhelming her. “Easy.” He held her, capturing her writhing body with his, his chest heavy on her rounded spine, his arms braced at her sides. “Easy, Little Star,” he murmured into her curls. The waves diminished in intensity and Starla collapsed on the ground, her mind blank and her limbs lifeless. “That is what I want, Bocc,” she whispered. “I want you.”
***** She hates it. Bocc followed his little mate through their home as Chrome watched from a respectful distance, reprogrammed to tolerate Bocc’s presence. Starla drifted her slender fingertips over the white walls, the materials sourced off world using his invention credits. “Are other Lokan homes like this?” she asked quietly. “Lokan homes—” “Chrome, you aren’t to speak unless spoken to,” Bocc blurted, interrupting the android’s explanation. Chrome immediately shut his mouth and folded his arms, his expression unnervingly irritated. I made him too real. Bocc narrowed his eyes. The android mirrored his action. “Well?” Starla lifted one eyebrow. 49
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“No. They’re nothing like this.” Bocc snorted, thinking of the primitive huts his brother’s tribesmen refused to improve upon. “They don’t even have running water.” “The running water is nice.” Starla gave him a small smile. Is she implying the rest of the house isn’t nice? “Your invention?” “Yes, but the shower stall wasn’t my design.” Bocc stalked over to the far wall, pressed a hidden panel and revealed his hoarded collection of architectural documents. “It originated with a famous designer.” He sorted through the information, his fingers growing clumsy as Starla joined him. “On Symra II.” He showed her the image, bracing himself for her ridicule. “Imagine a building like that, as tall as the trees. We would sleep in the clouds.” Her head bent over the fragile paper, her exotic brown curls, the curls she tried to convince him were plain, framing her beautiful face. She’ll laugh and call me a fool. I am a fool, for wanting what I can’t have, for wanting her. He tightened his grip on the paper, twisting it. “You could build a home like this.” Starla covered his hand with hers, her skin achingly soft. “With the sleeping chamber on the ground floor, so the planet can replenish your energy.” She looked around her, her eyes bright. “You could use this home as your base and build upward.” “You hate this home.” The words slipped out before he could stop them. “I judged you without knowing the facts.” Her mouth twisted. “I thought you were running from your Lokan roots.” She brushed her fingers over his scarred knuckles. “I didn’t realize you were embracing your dreams.” She understands. Desire roared through Bocc. “I wish to embrace you.” He leaned into her, smelling her rising arousal. The paper fell from his fingers, drifting to the floor. “I—” The door slammed open. “You take the female and wish all of the glory too, brother?” Tukbar roared, his sword in his hand. “And I believed your talk of not
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wanting to be chief.” More warriors pushed into the house, jostling for position around Tukbar. Always an outcast. Always under suspicion. “I can’t be chief.” Bocc stepped protectively in front of Starla. “I’m not a Lokan, or did I hit you so hard you don’t remember that?” He stealthily perused the room, looking for a weapon, his sword left near the door. “But this would change your status, wouldn’t it?” Tukbar spat. “Minarb explained your secret plan.” The men around him nodded, disgust on their rugged faces. “My secret plan to fight our mythical enemy, you mean?” Bocc forced a laugh, showing them he didn’t care about their unfounded accusations. “With that big toy I’ve been playing with? Is that the secret plan you claim to know nothing about?” “The toy?” Tukbar looked behind him, his face flushing red. “Those stories were so fantastical. How could I believe them?” He sheathed his sword, and the other warriors did the same. The pain in Bocc’s heart didn’t lessen. “How could you believe me, your own brother?” He glared, not ready to forgive or forget. “How could you believe Minarb, your female?” “His female?” Starla spluttered, her soft hands flat on his back. “Not now.” Bocc pushed her farther behind him, unwilling to share her beauty with the others. “You should leave, Lokan. You’re not welcome here.” Starla inhaled sharply, the sound adding emphasis to his declaration. Tukbar’s face crumbled. “We’ll leave, but not until we receive the same blocker you’ve taken. I won’t have you fight our enemy alone.” “Alone? I’ve lived my life alone,” Bocc growled, his rage escalating. “I don’t need Lokan help now.” “You’re a proud fool, Bocc.” Tukbar turned, his shoulders slumped. “Just like our father.” The warriors filed out of the house.
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“Wait!” Starla ducked under Bocc’s arm and darted toward the men. “He does need help.” “Does he?” Tukbar pivoted, his expression brightening. “He does not.” Bocc pulled his reckless mate back into the protective circle of his arms. “Little Star, I won’t have you interfering with my decisions.” “And I won’t have you dying.” She glared up at him, adorably fierce. “I was sent here to do a job and I’m doing that job.” You were sent here for me. Painfully aware of their unwanted audience, Bocc kept his mouth shut. “Chrome, come.” She beckoned, taking his silence for agreement. Tukbar stepped back, his face losing color. “Why do you need the machine?” “You want the blockers, I’ll give you the blockers.” Starla opened Chrome’s chest cavity. One of the men, Bocc wasn’t sure which one, whimpered. She extracted a tube of clear liquid and tapped it. Baktot’s balls, she’s going to administer them right here, right now. “Outside,” Bocc barked, pushing roughly on Tukbar’s shoulder, transferring some of his fury physically. The Lokan warriors lumbered into the cool night air. “No one’s getting sick inside our home.” “Our home,” Starla repeated, her wide-eyed gaze meeting his, and Bocc struggled to hold on to his anger. “Sick?” Tukbar swallowed hard, a bead of sweat forming on his upper lip. Bocc received a shameful amount of joy from the warrior’s distress. “I was sick for less than a day.” “I was sick for a week,” Starla grumbled as she stomped outside, making a lot of noise for such a little person. “So I don’t want to hear any whining.” She wagged her finger at the man who would someday become chief.
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Tukbar stared after her. “By the gods, your mate is fierce, brother. Our mother, if the stories hold any truth, would have liked her.” “I’ve heard no stories of our mother.” Bocc kept his expression blank like his android’s, not showing his envy. “But my mate is fierce.”
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Chapter Five Bocc pumped water into the wooden bowl as Minarb knelt demurely in front of him. “Tukbar claims not to trust this source. He prefers water without the taint of technology.” Bocc glanced worriedly at his brother. The warrior moaned loudly, his feverish body sprawled over the furs. Other men writhed in equal agony around him, their females diligently tending to them. His gaze settled upon Starla. She pressed a tube of Balazoid blocker to a young farmer’s neck, Chrome standing protectively behind her. “Your brother might not trust the water, but he trusts you,” Minarb murmured. “Only my hastily spoken words made him question that trust.” She bowed her head. “It wasn’t your error.” Bocc glared as Chrome brushed his hand over Starla’s back, his casual action signaling to other males that she was his mate. “Mates should communicate openly. It was my error for not explaining the situation fully.” “M-m-mate?” Minarb’s voice filled with wonder. “Your brother and I?” She turned her head. Bocc ignored her question, his attention on his manufactured rival. Chrome lifted his chin, their gazes met and he read the triumph in the android’s flat eyes. “Take care of my brother, Minarb.” He stalked toward his Little Star, weaving through the ill volunteers, men his brother had goaded into taking the blocker. All of the young warriors, the future of the tribe, lay upon the furs. If one of them dies, I’ll die. The chief will see to that. Bocc frowned. Leaving my mate to be claimed by another. Starla smiled at him, oblivious to his dark mood. “Are you sure this is the last man, Bocc?” Chrome placed his hand possessively on her shoulder. She leaned back. 54
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Into the embrace of another male. Bocc growled. “You’re done here, mate.” “With the volunteers.” Starla stood, wiping her palms on her wrap dress, appearing so tiny positioned between him and Chrome. “The women won’t let me give them the blocker. They claim they’re needed to nurse their men back to health.” “Then you’re not needed.” Bocc grasped her hand and pulled her upright, away from Chrome. “By others,” he amended, leading her toward the house, Chrome following them. “I need you.” “I don’t know anything about mortars,” Starla warned. “Though I suppose I could learn and Chrome will help.” Chrome won’t touch anything more of mine. Bocc’s lips flattened. “Goddess.” Lork, the metal worker, reached out and grabbed Starla’s boot. “I—” First Chrome, now Lork. Bocc turned, dropping Starla’s hand, a red-hot rage sweeping over him. “Do not touch her.” Chrome slammed Lork back against the ground. “This is your second warning.” “Second warning?” Bocc’s short, blunt nails dug into his palms, the pain dulling some of his emotion. “You dared to touch my mate?” “He has a fever.” Starla spread her small fingers over Bocc’s bare chest, her touch soothing him. “He thinks I’m the goddess of fire.” Her mouth quirked up into a smile. “Me, a goddess, Bocc, can you believe it?” She glanced behind her. “The poor man.” “I’ll kill that poor man if he touches you again.” Bocc slung her over his shoulder, her weight nothing, and he strode toward their home. “You’re my goddess.” He swatted her ass. Starla gasped and the musk of rising arousal filled his nostrils. “Mine, Little Star.” His hand warmed as it connected again and again with her leather-covered flesh. “Bocc.” Starla squirmed, her cheek sliding along his back.
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She didn’t shrink away from him and he didn’t smell fear on her soft skin. Bocc burst through the front door and headed to their sleeping chamber, his boots smacking on the tiled floor. “You overruled my decision about the blockers, Little Star. That is intolerable.” He slapped her wiggling bottom, the sound echoing in the empty house. “Do not hurt her,” Chrome rumbled, trailing them too closely for Bocc’s comfort. “It is not my mate you should be concerned with, Chrome.” Bocc set Starla down on the wall-to-wall sleeping support. She hissed as her ass connected with the soft fabric. “Undress…both of you.” “Both?” Starla squeaked, obediently unraveling her dress, revealing firm pale breasts tipped with pink nipples, a curved stomach and short brown curls nestled enchantingly between her white thighs. “Chrome is staying?” “Why wouldn’t he stay?” Bocc glanced at Chrome. The naked android stroked his cock lazily as though he intended for it to be used. “I built him for us to enjoy. Bend over, Chrome, hands on the sleeping support.” As the android followed Bocc’s instructions, Starla sat upright, her nipples tight, her breathing heavier. “You’re going to fuck him? Chrome is a Lokan male. He won’t like—” “Chrome is an android,” Bocc explained patiently, her concern for his invention both frustrating and gratifying. “He doesn’t have feelings, do you, Chrome?” He ran his hands over the android’s muscled back, the design his perfect replica, a Lokan male in his prime. “No,” Chrome rumbled, arching under his touch, his reaction flawless. “Emotion is a human attribute. I obey my programming.” “And I set his programming. He’s my most brilliant creation.” Bocc stroked his thumb down Chrome’s spine, feeling each painstakingly crafted vertebrate. “I touched him all over, ensuring every detail was correct.” He swirled his fingertips over the dimples above his ass.
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“Did…did you?” Starla knelt close to Bocc, her gaze following the movement of his hands over the android’s body. Bocc stripped off his loincloth. “Feel this.” He placed one of her small palms on Chrome’s ass cheek. “And feel this.” He pushed her fingertips into the same muscle in his own body. “It took me an entire day to get that right. I’d stroke myself and I’d stroke him, thinking of you, always of you.” “You knew he’d be sent to me?” She caressed down their thighs, her casual exploration hardening Bocc’s cock. “I built him for you.” He leaned over, sliding his cock between Chrome’s ass cheeks. “He protects you because I protect you. He acts as though he loves you because I love you.” Her hands stilled. “You love me? No, you can’t.” She shook her head. “You just met me.” “I know everything about you.” Bocc pressed his lips to the android’s shoulder blade, tasting the salt of his skin, admiring the details he added. “Like I know everything about you?” Starla kissed Bocc’s bicep, her tongue skimming over the muscle, sending waves of need rippling along his arm. “Because I know Chrome?” Bocc gazed at her with admiration. By the gods. She’s intelligent. “I know enough about you to realize I’m fortunate to have you for a mate,” he amended. “Even though I overruled your decision?” She rested her cheek on his arm. “Ahhh…yes, I’m angry with you.” Bocc concealed his smile behind a grim mask. “I’m leading this mission, Little Star.” “Because you’re male?” Starla’s lips turned downward. Bocc leaned over and captured her plump bottom lip between his teeth. He pulled on that sweet flesh and released. “Because I’m the experienced Federation operative and native to the planet.”
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“You’re a Lokan.” She challenged him with her direct gaze. “I’m no longer Lokan.” Bocc rocked against Chrome, trying to ease his building tension. “I’m an outcast.” She snorted, a cute sound that made him want to laugh. “An outcast with half of the village recuperating outside his door.” If only one of the tribesmen was my father… “Did Chrome tell you we fucked over and over again to get his responses accurate?” Bocc abruptly changed the subject. “I let him take my ass so I’d know he’d fuck yours properly.” “Your spies said I liked anal sex?” Her cheeks flushed. A chuckle escaped his lips. “I hoped you would.” Bocc straightened. “Get on your hands and knees, Little Star.” He flipped her over easily and she squeaked a weak protest, her body bouncing on the sleeping support. “Let me see if Chrome’s prepared you properly for me.” He stroked over her ass, tinged pink from his earlier rough play. She moaned, wiggling as he cupped and squeezed her soft flesh, her arousal feeding his. “You like that, don’t you?” He spread her ass cheeks and probed her puckered hole, eager to be inside her. “It’s as I feared.” He clucked his tongue, his cock bobbing with excitement. “You’re too tight for my cock.” He pushed into her and Starla rocked back, taking his thumb deeper and deeper until he was fully inside her dry heat. Preparation first. “Chrome, lubricate and come here.” Bocc regretfully pulled his thumb out of her ass and Starla growled her unhappiness. “Patience.” He wrapped his hand around the android’s shaft. “Feed your cock into her.” Chrome’s dark flesh pushed into her pink hole. “Beautiful. That’s it.” More and more of the android’s shaft disappeared into Starla’s small body. Bocc stroked her wet, hot pussy, applying her juices to the stretched tight seam until Chrome’s hips pressed against her ass cheeks. “Perfect.” This is how we’ll look when I fuck her ass. “How do you feel, Little Star?”
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“Stuffed,” she mumbled, her knuckles white, the sheets twisted around hands. “But aren’t you…” “I am.” Bocc positioned himself behind Chrome, spread the android’s ass cheeks and found his hole. “I’m fucking you both.” With one hard thrust, he filled the android’s lubricated channel. Chrome swayed forward silently and Starla moaned. “Feel that?” “Sweet study.” She writhed underneath them. “How could I not?” “Good.” Bocc grinned, Chrome’s ass clenching his shaft. He withdrew up to his tip, the pinch pure ecstasy, and thrust deep, rocking the android, driving an animalistic sound from his human mate. Bocc gripped Chrome’s shoulders, leveraging off the android’s form to drive deeper, harder. Chrome braced his body over Starla’s, connected only by his cock in her ass, impaling her more and more with each thrust. She rocked back, panting and moaning, appearing so small, so fragile under their big forms. Bocc grunted, intent on reaching her, satisfying her, through their android conduit while Chrome remained silent, an impassive participant. He dug his fingertips into hard male muscle and ravaged the android’s ass, blunting the edge of his reckless passion, knowing he couldn’t cause Chrome pain. The room filled with the sounds of their furious fucking, the slap of body on body on body, his grunts and Starla’s moans. Their rutting wasn’t gentle and it wasn’t loving. Bocc plowed into Chrome’s tight ass with all of his strength. His long braid smacked against his back, whipping his spine, and Chrome’s blue-black hair struck his chest, the dual pain driving him faster. “Bocc! Bocc!” his mate called for him, her voice thin and needy. Bocc pulled out fully, gripping the base of his cock, the air cooling his ardor. “Move aside, Chrome.” “No,” Starla whimpered as the android stepped back. “I’m so close.”
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“As am I.” Bocc took Chrome’s place. “We’ll find our fulfillment together.” He pushed into his mate’s loosened hole, sliding slowly into paradise. She was even tighter than Chrome, her body resisting his invasion. “Yes.” Starla arched her back, tilting her hips to take him. “You’re perfect, mate.” Bocc groaned as he buried himself up to his base. He lowered his chest onto her spine, bracing himself with his arms, his face caressed by her long brown curls. “You’re everything I’ve dreamed of and more.” Bocc rested on her small form, listening to her breathing, inhaling the scent of desire mixed with a softer emotion he couldn’t place. This is where I belong. He reached around her torso and filled his palm with her breast. She inhaled sharply and Bocc smiled. As he closed his fingers around her nipple, her ass muscles clenched his shaft and it was his turn to suck in his breath. “So perfect.” He rocked into her, loving her leisurely, in no rush to leave that perfection. Starla undulated, her curves rubbing against him, and he moved with her, matching her pace, sliding his cock along her narrow channel faster and faster. She was so sensuous, so tempting. He clenched his jaw, reining in his passions, not wanting to scare her, to hurt her. “Harder,” she demanded harshly, bucking back on him. “Take me harder, Bocc.” “Little Star.” Bocc pleaded for mercy, but she had none, demanding more, everything from him, writhing like a wild thing under his body. He grunted, using all of his strength and all of his ability to satisfy her. “Harder,” she cried, shredding his control with her musical voice. Desperate to please her, Bocc slid his hand down her stomach and threaded his fingers through her soft hair to find her clit. “Come for me, mate.” As he ravished her ass, driving into her with his cock, he circled her pleasure button, her juices coating his fingertips.
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“Yes,” she hissed, swiveling her hips and grinding her pussy against his fingertips. She was so wet, her moisture dripping down his wrist. Her thighs trembled and her body tightened. Bocc’s balls drew up, aching for release. “Come for me now,” he commanded as he drove his cock deep into her and slapped her clit hard. “Bocc!” she screamed, squeezing his shaft. “Starla!” he roared, spurting hot jets of cum into her quivering ass. Bocc came and came and came until he had nothing left and he collapsed, drained, on top of her. “Sweet study,” she murmured, sounding dazed, her body shaking under him. Bocc rolled onto his back, taking his little mate with him. “I didn’t teach Chrome everything.” He grinned, satisfied that he had pleased her.
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Chapter Six Starla glanced at Bocc as she washed her hands, having checked the rapidly lowering temperature of one of the quickly healing warriors. Her temporary mate was bent over one of his mortars, testing it after yet another adjustment, his thoroughness impressing her. Everything he does impresses me. Except for… “Chrome,” she whispered to the android beside her. “About last night.” She paused, uneasy about putting his embarrassment into words, yet needing to ask the question. “Were you really fine with Bocc using you that way?” Chrome stared at her with his unblinking silver eyes. “I was designed to be used that way. It pleases me to fulfill my purpose.” Some of the tension eased out of her shoulders. “You didn’t look pleased.” “This is my pleased expression.” Chrome’s lips stretched into a goofy smile and Starla’s lips twitched. “It isn’t suitable for an android with my capabilities, so unless instructed, I don’t activate it.” “Oh, Chrome.” She laughed, hugging his arm, relieved. “I love you.” Bocc turned his head and scowled at them and she laughed some more. “I suspect I might love your maker too. He thinks I’m beautiful, you—” “He’s coming.” Minarb ran down the rocky path toward them, her long black hair flowing behind her. “The chief’s coming. We must hide Tukbar.” “Are you sure?” Starla looked up at the sky. “Because once the sun reaches the trees, the warriors will be well. If we wait moments more—” “We can’t wait.” The young woman huffed, her generous chest heaving. “He’s right behind me, with the elders. I took the shortcut, knowing they couldn’t navigate the hill.
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That’s the only reason I got here first.” She pulled a glassy-eyed Tukbar into a sitting position. “Help me.” “I’ll move him.” Bocc swung the big warrior over his shoulder, grunting with the effort. Minarb clutched the animal-hide blanket. “We’ll move him around the house and get rid of the chief quickly.” “We can’t move them all.” Starla waved her hands at the recuperating warriors. “What will we do?” “We’ll let him think the worst.” Bocc grimaced, the pain on his face tugging on Starla’s heart. “He always does. Here.” Minarb spread the animal skin and Bocc set his brother down gently. “If something happens to me, the canisters are in the small hut and Tukbar has seen me work the machine.” “What will happen to you?” Starla looked up at him, fighting the fear in her heart. He turned away from her, avoiding her gaze. “Bocc?” She grabbed his arm. He took her hand and threaded his fingers through hers, gripping her tightly. “He’s a good chief, Little Star. He won’t tolerate a threat to the tribe.” “And he’ll think you’re a threat to the tribe.” She chewed on her bottom lip. “His own son.” “I’ve never been his son.” He walked with her toward the other warriors, leaving Minarb to tend to his brother. “I killed the love of his life. Before meeting you, I didn’t understand his hatred, but I do now. If anyone, even a child, hurt you, I’d hate that person too.” “You—” He cupped her face and swooped down, capturing her lips in a demanding, desperate, glorious kiss. She opened to his loving assault and swayed against him, trusting him to hold her. They kissed, not caring about the Lokan men and women around them, Starla’s complete focus on the man she cared for.
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Bocc pulled away, appearing as dazed as Starla felt. He swept a calloused thumb over her humming lips. “I’d kill to keep this, Little Star,” he murmured, his quiet words spoken as though they were a vow. Starla tucked her body under his arm, savoring his body heat, her lips humming. “I hope you don’t—” “Bocc!” A roar rocked the morning stillness. The chief, Bocc’s father, stood at the edge of the clearing, his sword in hand, his gray-highlighted hair decorated with bone and feathers. His eyes blazed molten silver. His body shook, a cloak of the richest blue billowing from his shoulders. He was huge and intimidating, an older version of Bocc, and Starla instinctively stepped back. Bocc moved forward, his shoulders squared. “Chief.” He jutted his chin defiantly, his hand resting on the hilt of the sword strapped to his side. They’ll fight each other. Starla read that realization in the faces of the conscious tribesmen, the elders grim and the women horrified. The few precious women. “It was me.” She pushed past Bocc to stand between them. “I gave the warriors the blockers. Ask any of the women.” “Little Star,” Bocc growled. “This is for the best,” she whispered. “There are women and children in the village who haven’t taken the blockers. I’ll be closer to them when the Balazoids attack.” “They’ll attack the village first.” Lines etched Bocc’s luscious lips. “You’ll be safer here. If anything happens to you—” His voice cracked with emotion. “Nothing will happen to me,” Starla assured her stubborn male, squelching her own fears. “The Balazoids don’t fight women, and even if they did, Chrome would protect me. Trust him to do that for you,” she pleaded. Bocc opened his mouth, vehement protest written across his face. “Trust me, love.” “Love?” He stared at her.
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“You’re working together, the two of you.” The chief pointed his finger at his son, his dark brows drawn together. “You will both—” “He had nothing to do with the blockers.” Starla took another step toward the chief. The elders shifted uneasily. “I’m a Federation operative, as is my android.” She swept her hand, indicating the motionless Chrome. “My mission is to administer the blockers to as many Lokans as possible before the Balazoids attack.” “There won’t be any attack.” The older warrior dismissed her warning. “Lokan hasn’t been attacked in generations.” “Lokan is close to Balazoid and Balazoid is at war with the Federation,” Bocc argued. “They’d never allow our planet to remain inhabited.” The chief’s silver eyes flickered with an emotion verging on respect. “Why aren’t you ill like all of the rest?” “The illness is temporary and Bocc tested the blocker on himself before allowing me to apply it to others,” Starla explained. “All of the warriors will recover.” I hope. The chief’s face darkened. “If they don’t, if they die—” Bocc extracted his sword from the sheath. “You won’t do anything.” “Bocc.” Starla placed one palm on Bocc’s heaving chest, stopping his advance, and she met the chief’s gaze squarely. “If a Lokan dies because of my blockers, I’ll accept any punishment you and your tribe deems fit.” Punishments of the Lokans written by the late Professor Starla Black. That would be a best-selling paper. She took a deep calming breath and released it. “To show my goodwill, my android and I will go with you and the rest of the Lokans.” She slid her gaze to Bocc. He clenched his jaw and nodded slightly. “Until your warriors recover.” “If you harm her, I’ll kill you,” Bocc threatened, raising his sword. “Chrome will protect me, mate.” Starla rested her fingertips on the flat of the razorsharp blade, the metal cool against her skin. “Protect you?” the chief harrumphed, raising his eyebrows.
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“My android won’t allow anyone to touch me,” she clarified. “His maker, a highly intelligent, exceptionally handsome male, built him to guard me.” She smiled at Bocc. He didn’t smile back, his face dark and his features harsh. “Chrome is an extremely skilled warrior. He can kill a man easily with his bare hands.” One of the elders made a strangled noise and the gray-haired crowd around the chief shuffled restlessly. “Come Chrome. We should go.” Starla dropped her hands, entangling her fingers with Bocc’s, not wanting to let go. Will I ever see him again? She gazed into his warm silver eyes, memorizing his face. Bocc’s nostrils flared as he inhaled deeply. “Once the warriors recover, I’m coming for you.” He squeezed her hand, his grip reassuringly rough and secure. Starla squeezed back. “I’m counting on it, mate.” She released Bocc’s hand and turned from him, blinking back the threatening tears and hiding her distress. “Come, Chrome. We should get to the village before the Balazoids attack.” A woman whimpered. I frightened her with my flippant words. Starla stomped down the most indirect path leading to the village, in no rush to be locked in a dark, windowless hut. Her android strode soundlessly behind her. The elders stepped aside as she passed, careful not to touch her, and then followed, whispering words she wasn’t meant to hear. She walked and walked and walked along the winding route. No one talked to her, all of the elders ignoring her presence. Why do I care? Starla pushed away a low-hanging vine, the blue leaves broad and flat. A week ago, everyone ignored me. Has Bocc changed me so much? Yes. “It’s your fault, you know.” Starla glanced over her shoulder, squinting in the fading light. Chrome stared upward, his particular pose mirrored by the chief and his men, their expressions horrified.
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Starla followed their line of sight. Sweet study. Her stomach twisted. A massive starship covered the sky above them, blocking the sun. “They’re here!” She ran toward the village, her leather boots slapping on the hard ground, thorny vegetation scratching her bare legs. She burst out of the forest and Lokans turned their heads, their silver eyes huge in their tanned faces. Toddlers clutched their mothers’ legs. Women cradled their babies. Three boys took turns throwing rocks at the starship. Men leaned against thatched-roof huts, swords in their hands. There are so many of them. Starla swallowed her dismay, uncertain of what to do. “Everyone head to the caves,” the chief boomed from directly behind her and Starla started. “To the caves.” He waved his hands. Lokans rushed to the right, echoing the call to action. Women scooped up children. The elderly hobbled, their twisted branch canes poking the packed dirt. “Trew.” The chief slapped a gray-bearded warrior’s shoulders. “I’m trusting you to lead our people. Take them deep. We’ll find you when we’ve defeated our enemy.” The big man grunted and lumbered ahead, coaxing his tribesmen forward. When we’ve defeated our enemy. The chief’s confidence infected Starla. “Everyone should go to the caves. Without the blockers, the Balazoids will render you immobile.” “Fetch the hooks!” the chief ordered and men ran. “We’re warriors. We’ll fight.” Light blazed down on them as the docking bays on the starship opened. The pain in Starla’s stomach intensified. Transfer vessels filled with Balazoid soldiers entered the sky. Their stark black leather outfits contrasted vividly against their pale faces and tentacle hair. There are so many of them. “You’ll die.” “Not before my son’s warriors arrive.” The chief easily caught the hook thrown to him by another warrior, a long, twisted tail of twine attached to the molded metal. “Here.” He passed it to Starla. “Have your machine throw this onto a ship as it passes.”
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“Using the planet’s energized core to destroy it. Clever.” Starla handed Chrome the hook. “I see where Bocc gets his intelligence.” The chief grunted as he took another hook and the corners of his lips curled upward. “This was my wife’s idea before…before…” His good humor vanished, his face growing dour once more. “I’ll show your machine how.” He swung the hook by the twine, the metal whizzing through the air in larger and larger circles. A transfer vessel passed, the Balazoids watching them with their red demon eyes, and Bocc’s father lobbed the hook upward. The hook clattered inside the small ship. Sparks flew. Balazoids yelled. The ship skidded along the ground, collided with a stone hut and exploded. “One down.” Starla wrinkled her nose at the pungent smell of burning flesh. “Chrome.” Chrome downed another vessel. Starla’s rising hopes were doused as a Balazoid warship flew toward them. “Chrome!” He barreled into her and they rolled. The Balazoids fired. The ground shook. The heat singed her hair. The air around them rippled and the spacecrafts around them careened into the ground. “What happened?” Starla staggered to her feet, Chrome standing protectively close. More warships fired. Women screamed. Lokans ran. Starla’s legs tingled, the ground radiating energy, and vessels fell from the sky. The Balazoids shouted and some of the vessels retreated. The firing stopped. “The planet protects us.” The chief grinned, his face smeared with dirt. We need more protection. Balazoid warriors jumped from their transfer vessels, curved swords in their pale hands. “What is Bocc waiting for?” “The Balazoid Destroyer 378 remains out of range.” Chrome swung his sword, removing a Balazoid’s head, the red blood spraying over the ground. “It’s lowering steadily.” Starla grabbed the Balazoid’s weapon, the metal surprisingly light. “It’ll be in range soon.”
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“Soon,” Chrome agreed. A Balazoid warrior approached, blood trickling from his nose. Her android placed his big body in front of Starla and she gritted her teeth with frustration. Around her, men fought and she did nothing. The chief stumbled to her left and a Balazoid blade sliced through his thigh. “By the gods!” he roared. “Make the humming stop.” He hacked his sword through the enemy’s neck almost mindlessly. “The Balazoids are in your mind,” Starla shouted, dropping her useless sword. “We only have seconds of fight left.” She reached around Chrome’s torso, opened his chest cavity and grabbed a handful of blockers. “Cover me, Chrome.” She flung herself toward the chief and rolled as she landed, swords striking the ground around her. “No!” Chrome bellowed, running to protect her. Keep moving, Starla. She dodged Balazoids. Get to the chief. Her heart pounded, death surrounding her. “Chief!” she warned the red-faced warrior. She leapt onto his shoulders and jabbed the blocker into his thick neck, pushing the liquid into his vein. The chief bellowed in outrage. He shook her from his shoulders, tossing her back. Starla landed with a loud oomph, the impact softened by a Balazoid corpse. She blinked at the madness before her, the fighting happening as though in slow motion. Strange. The much-touted Balazoid warriors fought as poorly as the suffering Lokans. Blood dripped from their nostrils and ears, the crimson startling against their pale skin. “I’ll protect you!” Chrome sprinted toward her, swinging his sword, his handsome face covered with grime. “I don’t need protecting.” Starla grinned up at him, her vision blurred and her head aching. “No one will harm me, because I’m invisible. I’ve always been invisible. That’s why everyone else always ignores me. Only you and Bocc have ever been able to truly see me.” She frowned. Bocc. She shook her head and some of the fog cleared, her rational thought returning. “We must save his people, Chrome.” She pushed herself up, using the dead Balazoid’s sword. 69
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“I’ll protect you,” Chrome repeated, his tone flat as he fought the bungling Balazoids. They stood back to back, Starla guarding his rear. The Balazoids circled them, their pale faces grotesque with blood. One warrior lunged forward and Starla swung her sword. As she grazed the attacker’s throat and blood gushed from his wound, she pressed her lips together to subdue her whimper of distress. For Bocc’s people. She struck the hapless soldier again, slicing deeper, and he fell, his legs kicking. For Bocc. She fought nausea, bile burning her throat and tears stinging her eyes. Another Balazoid approached. Starla sobbed as she cut him down, taking one more life. Blood oozed over the hilt of her sword, the warmth coating her fingers. Her arm ached. An eerie hum radiated from the starship. “Baktot’s balls.” She uttered Bocc’s favorite profanity. A thud followed as Lokans collapsed, their bodies limp. “Not lifeless. Unconscious,” she muttered, reminding herself. “We’re in big trouble now, Chrome.” “We…fight,” the chief huffed, his face flushed and his eyes glassy. He lumbered toward them, fending off the inept Balazoids with each step. “Together.” He bumped his shoulder against hers. “Do not touch her,” Chrome growled. “Not now, Chrome.” Starla shuffled slightly to the right. “We fight.” She grinned at the chief, feigning a bravery she didn’t feel. “Too bad Bocc isn’t here. I hear he’s a fierce warrior.” “Both of my sons are fierce warriors.” A trickle of sweat ran down the chief’s red cheek. “But I love them too much to wish them here.”
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“It is better this way, I suppose.” Starla gazed at the hordes of Balazoids surrounding them. I wish I could tell Bocc his father loved him. She pushed away that regret and raised her sword, prepared to fight to her death.
***** Bocc looked along the mortar’s sights. Still too high. The massive planet-killing Balazoid craft lowered slowly but remained out of range. He turned his head toward the village. Small spacecrafts hovered over the village…what was left of it. They no longer fired upon his people. Upon my mate. Bocc ground his teeth, regretting his decision to let her leave his side. I must protect her. “What happened to her?” Tukbar staggered toward him, Minarb in his arms. Finally, he awakens. “What did I do to her, you mean?” “Don’t be a baktot’s behind, brother,” Tukbar snapped. “I know you wouldn’t harm a female. I…” His hoarse voice drifted off as he tilted his head up. “By the gods, the enemy is here!” “They attack the village.” Bocc nodded curtly. “As your warriors recover, I’ll send them to defend it.” In the hope they’ll save my mate. “The Balazoids.” Tukbar gazed down at Minarb, his face crumpling with a level of sorrow Bocc had never seen. “They’ve killed her, my love, my mate.” He fell to his knees, cradling the young woman. Bocc crouched near them, pressing his fingers against her neck. “She lives. Feel her warmth.” He waved his palm over her lips, her breath wafting on his skin. “She’s unconscious. Once we destroy the big ship, she’ll recover.” I hope. “Then destroy it!” Tukbar gazed at him with panicked eyes. “What are you waiting for?”
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“It’s out of range, you fool.” Bocc straightened, angry with himself for not creating a better weapon. “My mate is in the village.” His voice cracked, his violent emotions uncontrollable. “Do you think I’m waiting here, leaving her unprotected, for nothing?” “I don’t wish to leave Minarb unprotected either,” his brother confessed as he gently laid the woman on the ground. “And I don’t wish to remain here.” Bocc narrowed his eyes. “You’ve used the weapon before. It’s armed. It’s aimed. Press here.” He indicated the button. “When the ship comes into range.” Soon. He strapped another sword to his torso and daggers to his thighs, leather holding the weapons in place. “You’d give me the glory of saving all of Lokan?” Tukbar’s mouth dropped open. “Glory is meaningless if my mate dies.” Bocc slapped his brother’s shoulder. “I’m trusting you with our lives. Don’t let us down, brother.” Bocc sprinted along the shortest path to the village, the terrain rocky, the hills steep. He moved faster than he’d ever moved before. His lungs ached. His legs burned. Perspiration streamed down his wide forehead. I’m coming for you, mate. Stay alive. Vines ripped at his skin, their sharp thorns digging into his flesh. Chrome will protect her. Father, the chief, will protect his people. He smelled the smoke first, followed by the metallic scent of death. Not her death. Bocc inhaled, yearning desperately for Starla’s sweet fragrance. He broke through the coverage of the forest, running into a horrific chaos. Bodies, Lokan and Balazoid, warriors, women and children were scattered over the dirt streets. Fires burned. Metal clanged against metal. Little Star. Bocc picked his way through the bodies, relieved to see most of the Lokans breathed, their chests rising and falling. A breeze swept through the village and the smoke cleared, revealing two dark forms, both male, their swords engaged in a lightning-fast volley of strikes and blocks. A large male sprawled on the ground. A smaller form crouched by his side.
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My mate. He smelled her fear and her exhaustion. He smelled her. Bocc ran, leaping over bodies, his booted feet sliding on the spilled blood. He extracted both of his swords, curving his fingers around their hilts. The smaller Balazoid warrior grimaced, tentacles swaying, as he fought the bigger android. Chrome glared at him, his face twisted in simulated rage, his movements calculated and smooth. Perfection. “Bocc!” Starla called out, her look of relief heartbreaking. “You came.” She lives. “I said I’d come, didn’t I?” His voice lowered gruffly as he examined her for injury, leaving Chrome to fight the Balazoid. “You’re unharmed.” “Yes.” She stared at him, her exotic brown eyes wide. Bocc tore his gaze away to study the man at her feet. “The chief.” His father writhed in agony, blood covering his skin. “The blocker allowed your father to fight longer but now…” She waved her hands over the elderly warrior’s red face. A loud crack ended the clanging and Chrome’s mechanical head bounced on the ground. Baktot’s balls. Bocc pivoted on his heels and raised his swords. “Curses. Another caveman.” The Balazoid’s voice echoed as though heard over a large distance, his words spoken in the Federation’s universal language. “Answer me this, caveman.” The pale-skinned warrior wiped his face with the sleeve of his black uniform. “Whom should I blame for this buttfuck—the Balazoid traitor who told you we were coming or the commander who thought it wise to send a fleet of technologically enhanced soldiers to a planet with an energized core?” Blood trickled down from the Balazoid’s nostrils. “Even a great warrior such as myself succumbed to a slight enhancement, though not enough to kill me like the others.” He grimaced and drew a dagger to complement his sword, gripping a weapon
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in both hands. “I know you can’t understand me, but could you at least grunt at me like the other cavemen did?” The other cavemen…the other Lokans he’d killed. “Before or after I kill you?” Bocc growled. “Ahhh…a caveman with a brain, how amusing.” The Balazoid’s lips quirked upward. “I’m glad you think so.” Bocc struck quickly, slicing through the air with his dual swords, funneling his rage into his assault. The Balazoid arched his spine, pulling his body out of range, and Bocc’s blades crossed, caught by his enemy’s. He pushed, throwing the smaller male back, and he advanced, not allowing the warrior to regain his footing. Bocc thrust with the sword in his right hand. The Balazoid blocked, disengaged with a flick of his wrist and slid to the left, out of reach, his movements smooth and graceful. “Finally, a worthy opponent.” The warrior smiled thinly. Blood gushed in a steady stream from the Balazoid’s nose, dripping off his chin, the scent of his impending death hanging heavily in the air. “A better opponent.” Bocc surged forward. The warrior parried and countered, whipping his blade toward him, the metal blurring with the fast movement. Mistake. He threw the Balazoid’s weapon upward. The enemy raised his dagger to protect his torso. Bocc feinted with his left sword, the Balazoid moved the dagger to block and Bocc sliced his unprotected thighs. Blood spurted from the wounds. The Balazoid staggered backward, cursing in a language Bocc didn’t know. Bocc pursued him, his jaw clenched, determined to end this quickly. “This is for my tribesmen.” He jabbed. The injured warrior evaded the brunt of the thrust, only the tips of Bocc’s blades finding pale flesh.
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The Balazoid sank to his knees, his shoulders rounding in defeat. “What?” He glanced upward, over Bocc’s shoulder, his eyes widening. “And this is for threatening my mate.” Bocc sliced off the Balazoid’s head, giving the male a mercifully quick death. A boom rocketed above him, followed by smaller pops, the sky lit up, the brightness burning his eyes, and a whoosh of heat swept over Bocc’s tired muscles. He tilted his head back, gazing upward. The massive starship loomed higher in the sky and crackled with pockets of mini-explosions. Mini-explosions, not total destruction. He stared at the enemy’s vessel with horror. Baktot’s balls. It hadn’t worked. “Bocc.” Starla flung herself into his arms. He dropped his sword and held her tight, relishing the feel of her slight curves, the sweet scent of her body. “You saved me.” “No.” He nuzzled his chin into her gorgeous brown hair, ice-cold regret settling low in his stomach. “I’ve killed us all.” “What do you mean?” She looked up at him with trusting eyes. “My mortar failed.” Bocc clasped his love, his mate, to him and watched with a morbid fascination as the life-destroying barrel descended from the starship. What an impressive design. If only… He sighed. “I failed…you, my people, my planet.” A drone vibrated through his body, rubbing his skin sensuously against hers, and the weapon glowed as red as their enemy’s eyes. “I shouldn’t have brought you here, Little Star.” He rubbed his palms over her back, trying to comfort her. “It was selfish of me to risk your life. I wish—” “No.” She cupped his face with her small soft hands. “No regrets. I don’t have a single regret. I’ve felt more loved, more beautiful, more seen during these past days with you than I’ve ever had. I love you, Bocc.” “I love you, mate.” Bocc pressed his lips to hers, touching her gently and reverently, expressing his gratitude for years of hope and for days of bliss. She opened to him and
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he slipped inside her, tasting her sweetness and her love, their tongues twining, dancing. She moaned, an erotic sound that pulled at his cock, and squirmed against him, grinding her mons against his hardness. He cupped her rear, raising her higher, and she wrapped her legs around him. A crack deafened him and the planet shook beneath his feet. Starla stiffened. He murmured words of love into her mouth, holding her to him, waiting for the end, a peace he’d never before known shrouding his soul. Energy blasted through them, originating from Lokan’s core, lifting his braid and Starla’s dress and hair, her brown curls framing her face like a planetary ring system. “Beautiful,” Bocc murmured into the eerie silence, rubbing his nose against hers. “Are we dead?” she whispered, a smile curving her well-kissed lips. “No.” He blinked. “We’re not.” Bocc surveyed their surroundings. The unobstructed sun shone on leveled huts, posts and wells, the village flattened around them, yet the trees remained standing on the edge of the clearing, as did the tall grasses and all of the other natural protrusions. Peculiar. He glanced at the ground. His father was sprawled near his feet, his chest rising and falling. He lives. The tight band around Bocc’s heart eased. Bocc tilted his head back, looking upward. “The ship’s gone.” As was the mist, the sky clear. “What happened?” “A miracle.” Starla’s smile widened and she hugged him, her breasts brushing against his chest. His exhausted body responded to her embrace, his cock hardening. Bocc frowned, forcing himself to focus on the puzzle of the missing Balazoid ship. “There has to be a logical—” Moans broke the silence. Bodies moved around them, Lokan bodies, living Lokan bodies.
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“A miracle,” Starla repeated and she laughed, a joyous wonderful sound, announcing to the universe that they lived and they loved. Bocc smiled, abandoning rational thought, captured by her love. “You’re my miracle.” He held her to him.
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Chapter Seven Starla spotted Bocc striding up the path, his long braid swinging, the sun dancing on his broad tanned shoulders. She turned and waved her hands, warning the tribe he had arrived. The men and women ran into the forest, laughing and yelling raunchy sex advice. Starla’s face heated. She fixed what she hoped was a demure smile on her face and waited. Chrome stood protectively beside her, fully repaired and ready to defend her. “Little Star.” Bocc extended his hand to her. She
grasped
his
calloused
fingers,
comforted
by
his
sure
grip.
“Is
everything…ummm…okay?” she asked, knowing he couldn’t talk about his meeting with the other Federation operative. “The waves of energy were felt all the way to Balazoid.” He grinned boyishly, looking relaxed and carefree, and her heart flipped. “They won’t risk their home planet by attacking Lokan again.” “Good.” She threaded her fingers through his as they walked toward their land, their home flattened in the energy surge. Chrome followed, the android moving silently. Starla trembled with excitement as the giant tent came into view. She watched Bocc’s face for his reaction. “What is that?” His mouth dropped open. “Our temporary home.” She skipped down the hill. “One of the elders told me your ancestors lived in similar homes when they were nomads.” She bounced with excitement, thrilled to have been deemed worthy of their tribal tales. Historic Homes of the Lokans. The paper’s title alone will drive interest. “Do you like it?”
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“I love it.” He chased her and she ran faster and faster, laughing. Bocc caught her and he swung her into his arms, lifting her as though she weighed nothing. “How did you get all of these furs?” “Everyone in the village contributed.” She reached out and plucked the edge of the sky-blue hide. “And where did you get that one?” he asked gruffly. “It’s from your father.” Starla rested her cheek on Bocc’s chest, his heart beating against her ear. “He took it from a wooden chest and threw it at me as though it burned his hands.” She splayed her fingers over his hot skin. “I think he was glad to be rid of it.” “No.” Bocc slid Starla down his hard form and he stared at the leather hide. Her breath hitched at the raw, bleak emotion etching his rugged face, his silver eyes covered with a heartbreaking sheen. “I’m sorry,” Starla whispered, his pain piercing her heart. “I know the two of you still aren’t talking, but I thought when he gave us the fur, it was some sort of peace offering.” “Little Star.” “I’ll get a replacement from Tukbar and Minarb and take it down,” Starla rushed to assure him, wishing to rectify her mistake. “I never meant to—” “Little Star.” “Ruin anything.” Starla twisted her hands, wiggling with regret. “Your tribesmen built this shelter to show their gratitude and I—” “It was my mother’s,” Bocc blurted out and Starla stilled, certain she’d heard him incorrectly. He swallowed hard, his throat bobbing. “My mother’s.” He pulled her to him, enveloping her in a crushing embrace, and she wrapped her arms around him, holding him as tightly. They stood, clinging to each other, Bocc’s
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chest heaving against hers as though he had fought and conquered an invisible enemy. “Thank you,” he murmured into her hair. “But I didn’t do anything.” Starla smiled up at Bocc and cupped his wet cheeks, rubbing the moisture away with her thumbs. “You gave me everything, mate.” He swung her into his arms and grinned down at her. “You filled me with your love.” Bocc ducked into their temporary home, Chrome following them silently. Sun streamed through the gaps in the hides, lighting an interior large enough for the three of them. “And now I plan to fill you.” Bocc set her gently down on the furs and unwrapped her dress, revealing her naked body. Starla shivered, excited by the heated look in Bocc’s eyes, and she stripped the loincloth off her big warrior, freeing his hard cock. “Cold?” Bocc lowered his big muscular body over hers, bracing himself with one arm. She gasped as the connection of thigh to thigh, hip to hip, chest to breast, seared her skin, and he pressed his lips to hers, filling her mouth with his soft tongue, exploring, demanding. He tasted of roasted meat and wild, untamed man, and she drank him in, sucking on his tongue thirstily. As they kissed, she bent her knees, cradling him between her thighs and opening herself to him. He growled his appreciation against her humming lips, the animal sound curling her toes and drawing moisture from her throbbing core. Bocc drifted his rough fingertips over her shoulder and down her side, his loving path veering provocatively close to her breast. Her nipples tightened to aching points and he circled one taut peak, teasing her. She moaned and shifted under him, yet he didn’t touch where she wanted, needed him to. He followed the trail his fingers had blazed with his hot mouth and she whimpered, arching, painfully aroused and pleading wordlessly for him to suck her nipple. His lips curled into a smug smile, the damn man aware of what he was doing to her.
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“Suck me, Bocc.” Starla curled her fingers around his nape, underneath his thick braid, guiding him to her breast. “Patience.” He chuckled and flicked her nipple, sending a pulse of ecstasy over her body. “Now.” She pushed upward with her hips, pressing her pussy against his stomach. His chest rumbled, adding more pleasure, but not enough. She ground her wetness into his skin. “By the gods, mate.” He fastened his lips over her right nipple and sucked agonizingly hard. Starla’s world exploded in a dizzying array of light. “Bocc!” she cried. She dug her fingers into his hair. She pumped her hips, slamming her clit against his hard abs. His mouth tugged and released on her breast to her wild rhythm, the intense suction prolonging her pleasure. “Bocc.” She collapsed under him, her mind scrambled. He licked her nipple, soothing her abused skin, and she petted his head, smoothing down locks of long hair she’d freed from his braid. “You do fill me.” Bocc grinned. “I haven’t started to fill you yet.” He rolled until she was on top of him, her legs straddling his torso, his hard shaft nestled between her ass cheeks. “Ride me, Little Star.” She rocked on his body, the embers of passion flaring to life once more. He cupped her breasts in his big hands, kneading her flesh, and she arched into him, her long brown curls caressing her back. “So beautiful,” he murmured and, looking into his silver eyes darkened with desire, she believed she was beautiful. He did that, her primitive man, made her believe the impossible. Starla pushed back against his cock, clenching, relaxing, clenching, relaxing, massaging him with her ass cheeks. His breathing deepened. His grip on her breasts tightened. 81
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“I need to be inside you, mate.” Bocc lifted her easily, supporting her. She positioned his tip at her wet entrance and he lowered her slowly, his shaft sliding upward with an anguishing slowness, stretching her, filling her. “Sweet study, Bocc.” Starla closed her eyes, impaled completely on his hard cock, and she savored their deep connection, physical, emotional and spiritual. “Let me taste your mouth.” He slid his hands up her back and pressed down, drawing her to him, his expression needy and hungry. I do that to him. Starla brushed her lips over Bocc’s and pulled out of reach as he surged forward to capture her mouth. I do. She repeated her action, deliberately teasing him. “Enough,” he growled. He curled his fingers into her hair, securing her to him, the tiny pricks of pain escalating her excitement, and he brutally ravished her mouth, plunging into her with a reckless abandon. She swayed into his kiss, embracing the slide of tongue in mouth and cock in pussy. He clasped her hips and took control of their fucking, lifting and ramming her down upon him, setting a heart-pounding rhythm. “Chrome,” he grunted. Starla trembled with anticipation as Bocc spread her ass cheeks. “Eat Professor Black’s ass out.” “Bocc,” she whimpered, her lips a breath away from his. Chrome’s artificially wet tongue swiped her crease and she contracted her pussy muscles around Bocc’s thick shaft. “I’m filling all of you, Little Star.” Bocc thrust upward, driving his cock deeper into her while Chrome teased her puckered hole. “This is how I feel when you love me.” “Ohhh…” Starla undulated on top of Bocc, rubbing her nipples on his chest. Chrome followed the sway of her body, sliding his tongue inside her, his nose pressing against her backbone. “Yesss…” she hissed, her extensive vocabulary reduced to one-syllable words.
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“Yes.” Bocc caught her bottom lip between his teeth and pulled, spanning the small of her back with his calloused hands. She dug her blunt nails into his shoulders, inhaling the scent of blood, sex and potent, virile male. Chrome gripped her ass cheeks, ruthlessly exposing her sensitive asshole to his wicked tongue, focused on his goal with an android’s single-mindedness. Starla writhed, wedged between two strong, dominant males, helpless to block their dual attack on her smaller body. Bocc pounded into her faster and harder and her breasts bounced against his chest, the smack of flesh on flesh stimulating her to a feverous point. Chrome flattened his tongue inside her, stretching her channel. “Bocc?” Starla pleaded, dancing on the edge of release. Need more. Her body coiled tighter and tighter. More. A high keening noise rose from her throat, expressing her desperation. “Come for me, mate,” Bocc rumbled, his voice low. “Chrome, now.” Chrome nipped the rim of her ass, the unexpected pain pushing her into a dazzling freefall. Starla screamed and clung to Bocc, constricting her pussy muscles around his shaft. “Starla!” Bocc roared and thrust upward, the warmth of his release drawing a second round of body quaking shudders from Starla. He held her to him as she shook on top of him, her gyrations lessening until she finally stilled. “Bocc.” Starla laid her cheek on his skin, riding the lift and fall of his chest. As his breathing slowed, the motion leveled to a peaceful rolling. I could remain here forever. She sighed with contentment, listening to his heart beating strong and steady under her ear. “What if I said I was considering staying on Lokan?” Does he want me to stay? Starla braced for his response. Bocc stiffened, his muscles flexing under her. “I’d then help you with your considering, Little Star. I love you. You love me. You’re staying.” He linked his fingers over her lower back, securing her to him, preventing any escape. 83
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Starla smothered her smile, relaxing once more. “I suppose I should listen to you. Chrome claims you’re the smartest humanoid alive.” “I didn’t claim. I know,” Chrome grumbled from his corner of their temporary home. “I’m an android and androids are always right.” Starla met Bocc’s gaze and they laughed.
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About the Author Cynthia Sax lives in a world where demons aren’t all bad, angels aren’t all good and magic happens every single day. Although her heroes may not always say, “I love you”, they will do anything for the women they love. They live passionately. They fight fiercely. They love the same women forever. Cynthia has loved the same wonderful man forever. Her supportive hubby offers himself up to the joys and pains of research while they travel the world together, meeting fascinating people and finding inspiration in exotic places such as Istanbul, Bali and Chicago.
Cynthia welcomes comments from readers. You can find her website and email addresses on her author bio page at www.ellorascave.com.
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Also by Cynthia Sax Mission Menage Oh, Canada!: Lust by Moonbeam Ravished by Moonbeam
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