Alien Prince's Pregnant Fake Fiancée (Celestial Mates) Page 6

  “This is a ball, not a dance.”

  “Close enough. Actually, it sounds even worse.”

  She still wasn’t getting it! “Human, I refuse to marry one of my mother’s spies, and if I fail to find a mate tonight, I will be stripped of all my privileges and wealth.”

  Her expression softens. “I’m sorry. That really sucks. But I’m not getting involved.”

  “Oh, you’re getting involved,” I inform her. “Because if I’m exiled, then I won’t have the resources to send you back home.”

  Her eyes go wide. “What?”

  “Tonight, you must convince my mother that we’re madly in love…or be stuck with me forever.”

  Chapter 8

  Aisha

  Nothing puts things in perspective quite like the threat of till death do us part.

  “I’m not staying here with you forever,” I tell him.

  He smiles thinly. “You’ve already said that.”

  I know I’ve already said it, but some things can’t be said enough.

  “And it wouldn’t be staying here,” he continues. “It would probably be on some mining asteroid in the Vermega Trigon. We’ll be exiled, remember?”

  “You’ll be exiled,” I correct.

  “And you’ll be stuck with me because I’m your only match.” Then, he grins like this fact gives him some sort of sick pleasure.

  Aliens, I swear. If you think human men are difficult, you ain’t seen nothin’ yet!

  Volex and I strut our stuff down the halls of the royal palace.

  Alright, maybe strut was a bit of a stretch. He walks briskly and I practically have to break into a jog to keep up, which is difficult since I’m still in my fuzzy bunny slippers. They keep scuffing against the floors, which are made of some material that looks like a mix between sandstone and quartz.

  A part of me wants to just stop and admire them. Like everything else around me, the floor is stunning. Little glints of light travel mesmerizingly through the large tiles, and I cannot tell if they are reflections from the suns or are being generated by the stones themselves. Everything is so beautiful that it’s hard for me to stay focused on where Volex is dragging me off to next.

  Yes, I’m going to miss my test tomorrow. I’m devastated…and yet, there’s another voice in me that says: Fuck the test! The graduate program I want to get into is Environmental Design. My goal is to build living spaces that incorporate the beauty and strengths of the natural world instead of trying to simply redefine the environment and build on top of it. The architecture in this place is everything I’ve ever dreamed of. Everywhere I look, I learn something new. The possibilities make my mind race. I need to spend some serious time exploring.

  Instead, I’m going to a freaking bridal ball…whatever the hell that is.

  As we round a corner, Volex slows down in order to keep from careening into yet another woman who smiles at him and sneers at me.

  Okay, just how many women has this guy slept with? And why would a guy like this need a “bridal ball”? Did his mother not know he was a manwhore? Poor thing. She was probably blinded by love to her son’s numerous faults…and to his even more numerous conquests.

  “Volex!” I manage to get out as I break into a small trot beside him. “Why are we walking so fast?”

  Suddenly, Volex stops. “Are you having trouble keeping up?” he growls.

  I open my mouth but am unsure of what to say. Keeping up wouldn’t normally be a problem, but I’m a bit underdressed for this occasion—for any occasion, actually—that didn’t involve a bedroom.

  And we’re in a castle!

  It’s hard to keep up when your breasts are bouncing like a ping-pong match. When you’re not wearing any panties and things are a bit too breezy.

  Volex raises his eyebrows. “Do you need help keeping up after all?”

  Heat rises in my cheeks. “I wouldn’t need help if I hadn’t been kidnapped in my lingerie in the middle of the night!”

  His gaze drips. “Celestial Mates does have some…interesting methods.”

  “What the hell does that mean?”

  Volex works his jaw. “Nothing,” he says, then grabs my wrist. “Keep up.”

  I want to say something. I really should say something. But suddenly, all I can think about is how big and warm and rough the blue hand wrapped around my wrist is. He drags me forward and I almost trip over one of the bunny ears on my pink fuzzy slippers. My robe starts to slip and I clutch it right before “the goods” spill out for the court to view.

  Volex, however, doesn’t even notice.

  I tell myself it’s a good thing, but it’s a little hard. He sleeps with literally every woman around him, and yet he won’t look twice at me.

  Pathetic? Yes. But what’s even more pathetic is that with everything going on, the one thing I feel more than anything else—almost to the point that it eclipses all other sensations—is my desire for this strong man gripping my wrist.

  “Volex,” I begin again. “Where are we going? And why are we going so quickly?”

  His answer is either a grunt or some word that the translator fails to understand. And the grunt seems very reminiscent of a primal…

  Okay, this is nuts. I’ve got to be hallucinating. Maybe somebody snuck some acid into my coffee grounds…Oh my God, coffee! Where the fuck’s the coffee?!?

  Panic fills me, and something about that change finally captures Volex’s attention.

  “What’s wrong?” he asks. The sound of his deep voice feels like a caress, and before I realize it, I’m biting my lip.

  What the hell? How does he even do that? Maybe it’s because I haven’t gotten laid in…how long has it been? I do the math in my head… carry the one, subtract the four, divide by two…

  Okay, it’s been awhile. Way too long. I’m overdue. That’s all. I’m not hot for him because he’s ten feet of man-god with muscles I could lick for days. He looks like he’s got good stamina…

  Images of him arching above me as he puts that stamina to use fills my mind.

  I stifle a moan and roll my eyes at myself.

  Get a grip!

  “Nothing… nothing’s wrong. Well, there is one thing wrong. Do you guys have coffee? Like a really, really good, strong, hearty, bold”—Pull it together!—“coffee.” I swallow hard, my mind filled with images of something else strong, hearty and bold.

  Maybe they don’t have sex the same way. Without trying to be too obvious, I lean forward ever so slightly and try to catch a glimpse of his nether region, but my foot catches on one of my slipper’s fuzzy ears and I start to do a header into the beautiful floor instead.

  A strong arm is wrapped around my waist before I even have a chance to squeak my alarm at my impending face splat. In the next moment, I am pressed full bodied to Volex with my hands on his chest. I know that the top of my robe is gaping open to a degree that is nearing R rating, but I want it that way. I want him to see me. I want him to want me. Then I gasp as my hip shifts. Pressed into my stomach is the biggest, most impressive display of want I’ve ever felt.

  My cheeks heat and, despite myself, I turn demure and bashful, but I keep my hands on his chest as he eases his wrap-around hold on me.

  Lifting my eyes to look up at him through my lashes, my heart skips a beat that I can actually look up at him. He’s bigger than me in every way, and I cannot help appreciating how that makes me feel. It makes me feel safe—which I know is odd because I should be feeling at risk with him. But, I don’t.

  “Coffee,” he says as if trying out the word, and my body reacts as his voice washes over me again. I tingle from head to toe, and I arch my back to press my breasts into him. “It’s…” he pauses as if searching for the words, “a stimulant drink?”

  I slowly nod my head yes, never letting my gaze waver from his. “I like mine sweet, with sugar, milk and cinnamon.” I do my best to make it sound as if I’m talking about sex.

  The press of his excitement against my belly grows.

&n
bsp; “You’re a vixen temptress,” he whispers, leaning in the barest amount. His hand wraps around my wrist again, this time harder, and his legs pound the floor in long strides that once again have me rushing to keep up.

  Vixen temptress? Takes two to tango, buddy.

  I experimentally try to twist my wrist in his grasp, but his hold on me is too tight even for that. Yet, despite all signs that I need to feel concerned—that I need to be scared—I’m not. I’m not afraid… not of him. He fits me. It’s a sensation I cannot explain beyond that. He simply fits me.

  “Volex…Volex!” I try a sterner voice. “Where are you taking me?”

  He stops suddenly. Turning to me, he takes a deep breath and it heaves his giant, muscle laden chest. My free hand itches to reach out and touch him, so I tangle my fingers into my robe instead.

  “Word of your presence is going to spread throughout the palace like wildfire. Not everyone will be happy about it, and I cannot have you traipsing around like some daft kinderling. I need to put you someplace safe.”

  As if the conversation were concluded, Volex turns and begins walking again, pulling me along effortlessly beside him.

  “Put me someplace?” Alarm bells finally start going off in my head. “Volex, we need to talk.” But, it is as if I haven’t even spoken. He keeps walking and he keeps pulling me along with him.

  Bracing my feet, I pull back hard thinking that will get him to stop and turn and talk to me again. But, instead I have to stop my startled cry when without seeming to miss a step, Volex pulls me in front of him and lifts me cradled in his arms.

  Now, as impressive as this may sound, I am not happy about it! In fact, I’m mortified, and I do my best to struggle against him. You see, I can feel the cool air caressing my completely bare behind! The back of my robe isn’t long enough to cover my rear in this position. Making it worse, gravity is doing its job of causing the fabric to sag toward the floor. My cute little mocha hiney is out in the open for the whole world to see!

  “Volex,” I say, desperation and urgency clear in my voice, “let me down.” I fight the urge to kick my legs, knowing that it will only lead it an in-air tail wag and possible further exposure. “Volex!” I practically shriek, “let me down! I’m not decent!”

  “No… You are not,” Volex says dryly without looking down at me.

  “Oh no you didn’t!” I fume. I know that Volex is bigger and stronger than me. I know that if I kick and struggle that I won’t succeed in getting anywhere and that I’ll just open myself up to even further embarrassment. So, I go for tactic number two. Running my hand over the magnificent swell of one of his pecks, I find his nipple. Then, I squeeze and twist. Hard.

  Volex’s hue turns slightly purple as his eyes go wide.

  Tightening my pinching grip, I twist harder.

  Volex’s breathing grows faster and shallow, and his eyes narrow.

  “Let me down,” I growl, but Volex again doesn’t so much as acknowledge my existence. It’s of little matter though because two seconds later we walk through heavy wooden double doors. Inside a dark alcove, and before the doors even shut behind us, suddenly my legs are swinging free from Volex’s cradling grasp. But, my feet don’t touch the ground. Instead, I am pressed bodily up against the wall, pinned there by Volex’s body.

  He’s still breathing fast and heavy, each intake of air pressing against me harder.

  “You will be the damnation of me,” Volex growls.

  In the next instant, his mouth is on mine, and I kid you not, it is like fireworks. Honest to God fireworks!

  My hands fly up to his head to wrap themselves around his horns. It gives me good leverage, and I quickly find that I can control the giant beast’s angle of kiss. While I cannot control the speed of the car, I can control everything else.

  Without anything else to do with my dangling legs, I wrap them around Volex’s V-line waist and pull his hips tighter against me. I then shiver and gasp into Volex’s mouth when his strong hand travels up the length of my bare thigh to cup one of my bare cheeks.

  I exhale into Volex as a shiver runs through me, and to my great surprise and delight, he sucks my air into himself. Hungrily.

  His lips are bruising against mine, but I don’t know who is pressing so hard—me or him. I just know that he isn’t inside of me deep enough. I need him. All of him. My tongue explores his mouth, and he tastes like candied crabapples—sweet and tart and beyond-the-heavens good. I want him, I need him, and I’m ready to fuck him right here. I don’t give a damn who happens to walk through the doors to find us.

  As if reading my mind yet wanting to seek out more privacy, Volex lifts me away from the wall, turns and carries me through a small, open archway. One of his arms is wrapped around my hips with his hand firm on my ass and his other is buried in my hair at the base of my neck. Our tongues dance and our bodies move and glide against each other, ready to become one.

  Then he presses me against the wall within the small room he’s found and moves so as to encourage me to lower my legs, I comply, ready for his hands to strip me of my robe once and for all.

  I look up at him as he steps away, and I am burning with hunger. My hand travels up my torso to slip inside the deep, open V of my robe’s front. There, I palm my ample breast as a visual invitation of what I want him to do to me.

  He growls and his black eyes shift to grey, making me think of dark smoke filtered in light.

  There’s too much distance between us. I want him against me again. I want his heat and his hard body. I want the shift and flex of his muscles as he moves beneath my hands… as he takes me. But, Volex is even further away now. He’s backed all the way to the door, looking as if he might fall over, looking as if he might die.

  He staggers backward through the large arch and then slams his palm against the wall near the edge of the door. The air between us shimmers, and I can feel rather than hear a hum.

  Panic jolts through me with the startling cold of an ice pick.

  “Volex…” I rush forward, my hands before me, reaching, but I hit… nothing. Nothing but shimmering air that won’t let me past. “Volex? Volex!” My fist slams into the invisible boundary. “VOLEX!” I scream.

  Through the shimmer, I watch as Volex continues to stagger backward until he’s leaning heavily on the opposite wall. He looks sick. He looks as if he might die of a heart attack.

  He lifts a hand as if to placate me while he struggles to catch his breath.

  “What are you doing?” I hate the pleading, begging sound of my voice, but I can’t change how I feel. I can’t change the betrayal that I didn’t see coming.

  “I have to get away from you. I have to think. I have to figure things out. You’ll be safe here.”

  “Volex, don’t do this! Volex, let me out!” I bang my fist against the barrier and watch it go hazy in protest at each place I strike.

  “You’ll have to learn the rules,” he says, seeming to have gotten control of himself as he stands to his full, remarkable height. “You have to learn your place, and I don’t have time to teach you before the ball. This is better.” He gives me a curt nod, and his normally beautiful lips are thin and tight. “This is safer.” His gaze goes cold. “You belong here—for now.”

  My heart is beating so fast and so hard that I think I might have a coronary. My body is crouched and my palms are upturned in a shape that I can only describe as claws. The scream that comes from me is like nothing I’ve ever heard before. It’s inhuman, just like Volex. “Noooooooo!”

  Volex sneers at me—at least that’s what it looks like through the red blood haze that fills my vision. I scream again as he turns and walks out the heavy double doors that led us to this place. I scream again and again until my throat is raw. I scream until I’m numb and I no longer give a damn about my test.

  Chapter 9

  Volex

  “What have I done?” I can still feel the heat of her lips tingling on mine. My body aches for her in a way that feels as if a bandage
has just been ripped off. The pain is fresh and new, and I cannot push it from my mind.

  Turning, I pace through the length of the connected rooms that are part of my bedroom suite.

  “I’m not ready for this. I don’t want to be somebody’s everything yet.” In truth, I had just wanted someone temporary, someone disposable, to help put Mother off so that I could continue to do as I want, when I want, and with whomever I want. I had always thought that Celestial Mates was a farce, a joke. I had not for a second anticipated that the woman they’d produce would be my actual soulmate. I thought she’d be a woman I could placate Mother with until I grew tired of her and discarded her to join the ranks of all my other old lovers.

  The sound of her screams still echo in my ears, and I find myself pressing my palms into the sides of my head in an effort to block her out.

  “I’ll talk to Mother,” I mumble to myself, walking around my suite with my eyes nearly closed. I know that I look like one of the maddened, but I don’t care. I’m being torn in two and my other half is locked away in a small room because I’m not man enough to lose myself to her yet.

  “Volex!” sounds a voice with all of the authority in the world. Literally.

  I freeze in my tracks and then slowly turn to look upon the diminutive yet terrifying visage of my mother. Her long robe glimmers with living light, and her 900 cycles of beauty has grown richer and more awe inspiring to look upon with each passing cycle. The blue of her skin is like the clearest, sweetest and deepest pools of water that exist on Vertar, and she is the woman who will rip my head from my shoulders to paint my rooms in crimson if I do her wrong enough.

  “Volex,” Mother says as she crosses her hands before her, “I have heard rumors.”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  Her eye ridge arches. “Ma’am? Now I know you’re in over your head. What have you done?”

  I gulp and fight the urge to take a step back. “Ivar told me to go to Celestial Mates.”