Mate Her by Jenika Snow
6
Brawn swooped lower as the entrance to their cave home came into view.
All Hades males lived within the safety of the mountains despite being predators themselves.
He lowered even still, and she made a small noise.
There was the scent of fear coming from her, but the more powerful aroma was her pleasure of freedom. Her species couldn’t hide their emotions from his kind, and in fact, she couldn’t hide much of anything from any other alien in the Stoker Galaxy. They were not as evolved as his kind nor able to hide their strengths and weaknesses.
And because they hadn’t changed to become just as strong as their adversaries, they were a dying race. For some reason, they managed to hang on though, to persevere despite the odds against them. They may have hidden in order to make that a possibility, but they were not stupid in that regard. To survive was to be discreet.
His kind was a feared species across all of the Stoker Galaxy. And after centuries of power and victory, that reputation had been earned ten times over. Brawn took one more corner before coming to land on the ledge of the entrance to their home. He set her on her feet, and she took a couple of steps back.
“Careful now, little human. The fall would kill you instantly, but you’d have all that time to know you’re about to die.”
He hadn’t said it to frighten her further but to let her know she was in a very dangerous world right now. This planet was not made for her kind, and without keeping an eye on her, she would die. He would have caught her before she fell, but that was beside the point.
The sound of wings and moving wind broke through his focus, and he saw Thorque and Lukin land right behind her. She jumped and spun around, but Lukin had her in his arms right before she fell backward.
“Easy there,” Lukin said softly, and his face was so close to hers that Brawn wondered if he’d try to kiss her. The breeding urge was running hard inside them, and if they didn’t have her soon, they would become these mindless beasts who had no clear thoughts on what they were doing.
It was a way nature made sure they procreated and extended their bloodline. But then again, fate and nature were cruel bitches, because females were not born to their kind. Hades males had to venture out to find a female to procreate with, and even then, the females had sons.
Brawn waited until Lukin let go of Minka, and then said, “This way.” He waited until she looked at him, made eye contact, and then he willed himself to calm the hell down. His cock had been hard as fucking stone since he held her in his arms on Arambria, and his desire for her was only getting worse.
He turned away from her and felt his fangs throb to mark her. His kind was a primal race, a barbaric and brutal species who were rough when they fucked, and when it was time to claim their mates, they didn’t hold anything back. Brawn focused on the opening in the side of the mountain. Below them, there were three lava rivers that ran parallel to one another.
An acid lake was in the distance past the jagged rock garden that emitted toxic fumes, and behind them was the forest with the flaming trees. This world was a hell all in itself, and only a Hades warrior could live outside the mountains for an extended amount of time. But this was also the only place they could live comfortably, and they would make sure Minka lived here without any problems.
If they needed to take her out of the mountain, they would take her to their spacecraft. She wasn’t their prisoner, but she was the prisoner to the planet of Hades.
He folded his wings inward, and they seamlessly melded back into his body. Now, all he had to show of them was the dark ink that marked his back. He moved into the cave and sensed his brothers and their female move up behind. Brawn made his way through the long, winding tunnels that led deeper into the monstrous rock.
The temperature started to decrease, and the farther he descended, the cooler it became. It was still warmer than what Minka was probably used to, but it wouldn’t be uncomfortable for her, and she would grow accustomed to it.
He could hear her breathing heavy behind him, maybe a little unsure of the tight, dark, and sharp confines, but when the tunnel opened up into a bigger cavern, he heard her start to breathe easier. She would need to be hydrated, because even the flight to the cave through the heat would have sucked the moisture from her.
Brawn wasn’t used to the feeling of wanting to protect and care for someone. Yes, he cared for his brothers, but they were just as brutal as he was, and the emotions they shared were nothing like what he felt for Minka.
It was most definitely the breeding need inside him that opened up his feelings like this, but he also knew saving her life created a bond between them. It was something that rarely happened, especially in terms of the savior being the one to feel this deep-rooted connection to the person he rescued, but Brawn was most definitely feeling it.
Rock sconces lined the walls, and the oil that kept them lit was from the Fetta that was deep inside the jagged rocks. It was oil that had an endless supply and came from the energy of the molten lava that flowed beneath them.
He sensed her grow more comfortable, maybe because there was no more darkness surrounding her, but either way, he was grateful her unease was leaving.
“This is where you will live with us, Minka,” Brawn said once they entered the main common room of their mountain home. He had spoken in his native tongue, and although she couldn’t understand him, he needed to rectify it.
They spoke English, but they would need to inject her with a translator chip so she could understand their language. That was what they would be speaking since they lived on Hades, and the sooner they got her accustomed to their way of living, the easier she would acclimate to everything.
“We should hunt for some Kathena meat. It will be better on her stomach until she can transition and is used to the food we have here.” Lukin was the one to speak. “I will also grab some more Monel sticks, because although you two think it is just to get high, having her become at ease will also help, especially when the time comes to breed her.”
They all glanced at Minka, who was looking at the items in the living quarters. Surely everything was so strange to her, but how would she react once they claimed her... at the same time?
“I think we should get her some Monel, or even some Bacca juice,” Thorque said, and his voice was strained. They were all on edge, and until they had her, that edge would grow fiercer and harder until they couldn’t stop themselves from taking her. Brawn didn’t want to do that, because surely she would fear them then.
“This is your home, little human,” Lukin reiterated and moved closer to her. He cupped her cheek with his hand, and the red tint of his brother’s skin against Minka’s light human-colored flesh was a stark contrast. For several seconds, Lukin just stared at her, and Brawn could see the almost dazed expression on her face.
She may be afraid of this situation, but there was no denying she felt the arousal pounding through her too. Lukin moved back, and then he and Thorque left them alone.
Brawn didn’t tell her about the beasts they would hunt, because although they were predators and were the highest in the hierarchy on the planet, there were creatures that would be able to smell her human weakness and take advantage of that. He would need to explain all of that soon enough, because she needed to be prepared, but one thing at a time.
“I must put a translator chip in you, so you can understand the Hades language,” he said evenly and watched her reaction.
She swallowed, looked around the room, and then faced him once more. “Okay,” she replied softly.
Brawn nodded. “How about you sit down and get comfortable. The translator won’t feel like anything but a little pinch, and then we can speak in my native tongue.” He walked up to her and then led her over to the hides that covered the rock benches.
The hides were from the Gatugas, a large, carnivorous animal that was on the planet of Yettiga. Their hides were so thick and plush, made of soft fur that blocked out the heat and hardness of the stone. She sat on the largest chair, and he went into the cooking area and poured her a glass of water.
Hades’ males didn’t need water, not much anyway, and since their planet only produced a small quantity, they had stocked up for bathing. But now it seemed like they would be supplying that water for their little human mate, because he knew her kind needed an abundance of it to survive.
He moved back to where she was and set the horn cup on the bones-and-teeth table in front of her. “It’s just water, but you need to drink all of it and more, because the heat of my planet is making you perspire too much. You’ll get dehydrated.” He looked down at her, stared into the light-green of her eyes, and felt that steady thump of desire fill him. “You’ll be safe and not dehydrate while in the cave, but every time you venture out of the protection the mountains provide, the natural water in your body will dwindle.”
He had only had her in his life for going on two sunrises, but already he felt like the animal inside him was going to break loose. He moved away from her when she picked up the glass and drank the water. He sensed her thirst, and her hunger, and knew his brothers would be back soon with something for her to eat that was substantial.
As it was, they only had dehydrated things, since they had been gone, and what she needed was something fresh.
Brawn moved back to the cooking area as she finished off the water and took in the surroundings. He watched her and checked her out himself. She stood and walked over to the rock wall that Thorque had carved the history of their family into. She ran her fingers over the rough texture, and Brawn looked his fill of her body.
Her ass was not as big and round as he preferred, but with the supplements Thorque had given her, it was getting there. He would have to be gentle with her when he finally slid his dick into her sweet body—they all would have to make sure they were easy. She was smaller than his kind naturally, and until she put on more weight, which shouldn’t be more than a day, he needed to keep his distance and let her heal properly.
She may be curvier now than she had been when he first got her, but he wanted her thicker and able to take them easily.
She turned to face him, and he looked at the swells of her breasts under the thin shift she wore.
Take your female. Mate with her. Breed Minka.
The taste of his blood filling his mouth because his fangs had sliced through his lip had the urge intensifying. How in the fuck was he not going to press her against the wall and slide his cock deep inside her?
How in the hell was he supposed to give her time to get accustomed to everything, when all he could think about was marking her body with his teeth and watching as his brothers did the same? He wanted his claiming mark on her, and right now, keeping his distance was the hardest fucking thing he’d ever had to do.
