Stolen By the Alien by Ashlyn Hawkes

15

Hannah

Although I wanted us to sleep beneath the beautiful, colorful stars that night, all of the walking across Harrock has made me feel a bit dirty, so I ask Omur to bring us back to the module. I wash up by myself for once, and when I leave the washing room behind, I find Omur’s asleep.

A smile curls my face, and I climb onto the bed beside him. As much as I want to rouse him sexually, I opt not to. He deserves to rest. He's done so very much for me as it is. Honestly, he's done far more for me than he ever should have. Omur is wonderful, so very good to me.

It’s crazy to think about it, but his stealing me away when he did might’ve just saved me. What life did I have waiting for me back on Earth?

Omur rolls over in his sleep. His arm falls across me, his hand just magically landing on my boob. He starts to squeeze it, eyes still closed, his breathing still even. Is he really doing this in his sleep?

“Hannah,” he murmurs, my name coming out on a sigh. “My mate.”

I stiffen, thinking about pushing away his hand when his lips are on mine. He’s not sleeping or pretending to anymore, and I return the kiss. I’m desperate for him. We talked for many hours after the meal with the Rockians, and I feel so very close to him, but to be his mate? That I don’t know just yet.

It’s almost not fair or right for me to be his mate, given that the maestro hates me so much. He hates me to the point that he wants me dead!

“Save me,” I mumble against Omur’s lips.

I’m not sure if he knows what I mean by that. Fuck, I’m not sure I know, but I push him away just enough for me to strip out of my clothes.

Omur removes his, and he climbs on top of me, going slowly, gently.

He’s making love to me as tenderly as can be.

I cry out when I orgasm, tears falling down my cheeks. He bends down to kiss each tear away, and I struggle to accept everything he’s offering, hoping I’m giving back enough in return.

Because he’s giving me everything he has, and I don’t deserve him.

But still, I take all of his kisses, relishing each caress, loving each lick and suck. Every thrust has me coming closer and closer to the brink.

And yet, I also feel as if I don’t deserve him, so much so that I put a hand on his chest.

Immediately, he stops. “Is something wrong? Did I hurt you? I’m so sorry, Hannah. I never meant—”

I shake my head, crying too hard to speak. “I…”

“You don’t have to say anything,” he assures me.

“I… I wish I hadn’t met Luca, hadn’t given him a part of myself. I hate that he hurt me, that he scarred me, and I hate that because of him, I ruined our… our lovemaking.”

“You did not ruin anything,” he assures me.

“Don’t lie to me.”

“I told you I would never lie to you. Why don’t you believe me?” He withdraws out of me and wraps his arms around me, pulling me close to him, making me feel loved and protected.

Yes, loved.

“I don’t deserve you,” I mumble.

“Why don’t you?” he demands. “How do I deserve you?”

“I’m not anything special.”

“You are.”

“My life… It’s a mess.”

“You have a chance to start over fresh,” he informs me. “What do you want out of life?”

“I want…” I shake my head.

“You have time to figure out what you want.”

"Do I?" I argue. "Because we're going to have to leave soon, and we'll have to face the music that I'm alive and well, and your maestro fellow isn't going to take too kindly to my being alive with my memories intact."

“We’ll figure all of that out, everything, what you want, what to do about the maestro, my surviving…”

“What do you mean about your surviving?”

He grimaces and looks away.

I swallow hard. He thinks I still don’t accept him, but I do. I accept him. It’s just the mating part that feels so strange to me yet.

“I need to survive too,” I finally whisper.

“That’s who you are,” he says.

“Maybe that’s who you are too.”

“Two peas in a pod,” he says.

“You know that expression?” I ask, shocked.

He nods. “I was reading through a book on the ship that has many common Earthling expressions on it.”

“When did you read that?”

“In between fixing the module.”

“You have books like that for all of the planets and their inhabitants?”

“Not all of them,” he says, “but a good number of them.”

“Is there one for me to read about the Garrux?”

“I can be your book.”

“I do want to read your book,” I say suggestively, and we get back to it.

This time, afterward, Omur truly falls asleep. I can’t, however, too amped up, and I leave the room in search of the spot that has the collection of books. I don’t recall seeing any books during the tour.

My search comes up short when I hear a faint sound. I follow the noise to the cockpit. A soft blue light is on, and I timidly press the button, hoping that would turn the light off.

It does, but then I hear a voice.

“Omur? Why haven’t you been answering me?”

My eyes widen. Uh oh. Is this the maestro?

“Hello?” I murmur.

There’s a pause.

“Hello? Please, sir, you have to help me.”

“Who the ovian is this? Where’s Omur? You aren’t that Earthling, are you?”

I scowl. I hate him all right. In fact, I might hate him more than I hate Brea and Luca combined.

I hesitate for a long moment. Then, I nod. Omur and I said we wouldn’t lie to each other, but I never said I wouldn’t lie to the maestro.

“I’m stranded on this strange place,” I babble. “I don’t know where I am, and—”

“Where is Omur?”

“He… He’s…” I swallow hard. It’s not easy for me to say this even though it’s a lie.

And I want it to always and forever be a lie because honestly, I’m not so sure I want to go back to living a life that doesn’t have Omur in it.

“Where is he?” the maestro shouts.

I wince. If he wakes Omur, this will all be for naught, but I have to get the maestro off our backs.

“He’s dead,” I wail. “Omur’s dead, and I’m stranded. I’m going to die here, in this strange place, and I… I…”

“Omur’s dead? How can that be?”

"We crashed," I say, thinking furiously. "The ship is destroyed. Partially. Partially destroyed, and I don't know… I'm going to be stuck here for the rest of my life."

“If you think you can just live on Harrock for the rest of your life,” he starts.

I suck in a breath. I was afraid he could tell where we are. He really is a dictator, having to know the whereabouts of all of his people every second of the day.

“You don’t have to worry about me,” I say, trying to sound brave even though I’m terrified. What have I done? “I’ll be fine, I suppose. I… Omur…”

“You fucking fool,” he snaps. “How dare you get one of my Garrux killed.”

“I did not kill him,” I protest.

“You did. You might as well have stabbed him in the back for all you’ve done. He’s dead, and it’s all because he mistakenly thought you were his mate. No Garrux ever mate with Earthlings. Your entire species should be destroyed.”

“How can you be so cruel?” I blurt out. My heart is pounding. If he decides to go to war against the Earthlings, we won’t stand a chance, will we? We don’t have spaceships that can take us from one inhabitable planet to another. We don’t even know the other planets exist.

“It is you Earthlings who are cruel and vicious and deserving of death,” he snaps.

“I wish I died instead of Omur,” I say. “But I do not wish him a life without love, a life without his mate.”

“That is precisely the life you have no choice but to live, but do not worry,” the maestro says, his tone cold, bitterly so. He’s positively nasty. “You will not have long to live.”

I suck in a breath. “You’re going to kill me?”

“I suppose I might be able to find a shred of compassion for you. Omur loved you enough to defy me, it seems. Very well. You may live, but I am going to send reinforcements to your location. They will send you back to Earth after your memory is wiped.”

I blow out a breath. “There’s no need for that.”

“Oh, but there is.”

“Why not just leave me here?” I cry.

“The Rockians should not have to take care of you. You are worthless, pathetic—”

“You don’t even know me!”

“I do know your kind. You act as if you are decent and good, but all you care about is the next cock that will fill your hole.”

“I’m not a whore.”

“Aren’t you? How many times did you and Omur have sex?”

“We didn’t have sex,” I say hotly. “We made love.”

“Bah. You fucked each other, and you know it. You’re an ovian bastard, and I will not have you touch Garrux technology any longer than is necessary.”

My jaw drops.

“Yes,” he says, his tone changing slightly. It’s far smugger now. “I’ve already sent out reinforcements. Soon, it will be as if you never met Omur at all. You should be thanking me. I’m sure you shed fake tears over his death.”

“There’s nothing fake about me!”

“No? There are plenty of Earthling women who are so very fake that they will have fake shit shoved into their bodies to enhance their boobs, their lips, their asses.”

“I feel sorry for you,” I spit out. “You don’t know the first thing about love. Clearly, that Earthling hadn’t been your mate. Maybe you don’t have one, but you only know hate, not love, not compassion.”

“Why do you deserve compassion, you slut? You fucked Omur, fucked his brains out, and now, he’s dead. You killed him.”

“I would never—”

“His blood is on your hands.”

I scowl. "You're an ovian bastard," I hiss.

“I do not care for your words, for your petty insults.”

“You’re nothing but a spiteful, evil man.”

“Evil? Evil would be making you pay for your crime. You killed Omur. You should be punished for that, and your punishment could very well be for you to come to Garrus, as Omur had been planning to—or had he thought to take you elsewhere?”

I say nothing.

“No matter. You should have come here, and then, I would have been able to fuck your brains out whenever I wished to feel a warm, wet pussy. You do have a warm, wet pussy, don’t you? Or are you dead inside?”

“Fuck you.”

“That’s just it. I would be fucking you. Maybe I will go for that option instead. All I have to do is call the reinforcement—Yes. Yes, I think I do prefer that option. I haven’t fucked a woman since that other Earthling fucked me over. Yes, what I need is a sex slave.”

“Fuck you.”

My hand slaps the button, and I wait, listening, hoping I disconnected the call. When the maestro says nothing, I start to bawl. It seems like all I’m doing is crying lately, but my life is such a mess right now. What else can I do?