Alien Skin Market by Lizzy Bequin

CHAPTER 41: MAUREEN

Some time later, Maureen awoke feeling groggy. She had passed the night submerged in a deep, dark slumber totally unmarred by dreams, but somehow it had done little to recharge her batteries.

How long had she been asleep? The sun was already up, and the soft green light was filtering down through the high canopy of leaves, gently illuminating her surroundings. The fire had burned down to embers in the night, but it didn’t matter. Rawn’s big, strong body snuggled around her, providing Maureen’s nude body with ample warmth. And the jungle air was warm enough besides. Across the smoldering remains of the fire, she spied the escape pod, still wedged tightly against the trees as she and Rawn had arranged it.

Maureen’s heart jumped when she saw the pod was empty. She started to sit up, her heart pounding, her body buzzing with adrenaline.

But she immediately realized she was wrong.

It had only been a trick of the dim jungle light that had deceived her. The naked Raksha killer was still where Maureen had left him, still lying unconscious and unmoving on the floor of the escape pod.

A wave of relief moved over her, and she settled back down with a sigh.

Behind her, Rawn’s breath huffed, gently stirring her hair, and Maureen pressed herself back into his body. Even though she felt well rested, a part of her longed to go back to sleep, even just for five minutes. God, it had felt so good to shut her brain off for a few hours. It was Rawn’s protective presence that had made that possible.

However, as Maureen nestled into her loyal companion’s embrace, she realized something felt…different.

It wasn’t the same soft, furry body she had fallen asleep against. Yes, it still felt quite pleasant, but instead of soft fur, her back was curled up against ridges of hard, smooth muscles. She glanced down at the protective weight draped over her midsection. It was not Rawn’s fuzzy forelimb; it was a human man’s arm.

With an explosive shriek, Maureen flung that arm off her body and scrambled away. In her panicked state, she came dangerously close to burning herself on the coals of the fire.

When she had put a few feet of distance between herself and the stranger, she turned to look at him.

Whoever the guy was, Maureen’s sudden outburst had woken him, but he didn’t seem too concerned. He opened his sleepy eyes, and Maureen saw there were no whites, just jet-black obsidian orbs. A mop of shaggy blond hair hung across his forehead, and thick blond Wolverine sideburns lined his powerful jaw, framing a face that was almost shocking in its masculine beauty. His hard chin contrasted with his lush, full lips, and his straight, almost regal nose contrasted with his heavy caveman brow. Pointed ears jutted from the sides of his head.

Maureen’s eyes shifted to his lounging body. It was put together like a human man’s, more or less, but there were marked differences. His shoulders and upper chest were lined with blond fur, as were his thick forearms. This fur only served to accentuate the smooth, hairless musculature of his abdomen, hips, and powerful thighs.

At last, Maureen’s eyes caught on the thicket of curly blonde pubic hair between the stranger’s legs, and the long, thick, half-aroused appendage dangling there, alongside a pair of massive balls. Her heart stopped.

She quickly brought her eyes back to the man’s face.

“Who the fuck are you?” She demanded. “And what have you done with Rawn?”

A massive, toothy grin split the stranger’s face from ear to ear. With the exception of his overdeveloped canines, his teeth were straight and flat—human teeth—but Maureen still recognized that grin immediately. The personality behind it was unmistakable.

“No way,” she gasped. “No fucking way…”

The man’s dark gaze shifted to the remains of the fire smoldering close to where Maureen was crouching, and his grin faded.

“Muh-reem, care-ful,” he said. “No burn.”

Maureen’s eyes were already circled in surprise, but now they actually threatened to pop right out of her head.

“Holy shit! You can talk too?”

The man tilted his head like a curious dog. “Ho-lee…ship?” His eyes went to the fire again. “Muh-reem. Please care-ful.” He gently beckoned her closer.

Maureen moved toward him, but not out of obedience. She was driven by pure wonder and curiosity. She crawled toward the lounging man on all fours until they were within touching distance of each other, and she knelt in front of him, every bit as naked as he was.

“Is it really you, Rawn?” she asked.

With a grunt, the man raised himself up into a kneeling position too, and he gazed deeply into Maureen’s eyes. Even though his own eyes were solid black, they still conveyed a deep sense of connection and longing.

“Me Rawn.” He thumped his muscular chest. Then he gently touched Maureen between her exposed breasts. “You Muh-reem.”

Maureen gave a little surprised laugh.

“I can’t believe it,” she said. “I’m lost in the jungle with Tarzan.”

Rawn’s brow furrowed, and he shook his head in frustration.

“Tarz-man? No. Me no Tarz-man. Me Rawn.”

Maureen couldn’t help but burst out laughing, which only added to Rawn’s confusion, but in the next moment she threw her arms around him in a tight embrace, which Rawn happily returned.

After a minute, she pulled back and cradled his face in her hands. Even though he had a human appearance now—and an insanely handsome one at that—Maureen couldn’t help herself from scratching the thick fur of his sideburns, which elicited a deep purr of enjoyment. He might look like a man now, but he was still the same old Rawn.

Maureen stared at him in wonder, studying his new features.

“Rawn, how did this happen?”

His face grew serious, and his heavy brows pulled together as if he were concentrating very hard. After a moment, he began to speak haltingly. “Rawn…ummm…Rawn…”

Maureen got the impression he knew the answer, but he did not have the ability to put it into words yet. She petted her hand across his broad chest to soothe him and tried a simpler question.

“How can you talk, Rawn?”

His face relaxed with apparent relief that the previous question was being abandoned for now.

“Rawn learn speak,” he answered. “Muh-reem teach.”

“Well, you’re a very fast learner, Rawn.”

“Muh-reem good teacher.”

Maureen hadn’t realized she was a teacher. She thought back over the past days and recalled the way Rawn’s curious eyes had always been trained on her, studying her every movement. Apparently, he had been listening too. Still, it was amazing how quickly he had picked up her language, albeit broken. It seemed impossible. Yet here he was, talking to her.

Another thought occurred to Maureen.

“Rawn, yesterday I saw the ship crash. What happened to the others? Jrayk and Tristn and Vaul. Are they alive?”

He nodded. “Yes, alive. All alive.”

Maureen felt as if iron chains had been lifted from her shoulders. Happy tears sprang to her eyes, a sudden celebratory feeling filled her heart, and before she realized what she was doing, she pressed her mouth to Rawn’s in a deep and increasingly sensual kiss. When their lips finally parted, she pressed her forehead against his and sighed, stroking his face.

“Oh, I’m so glad they’re alive. And I’m glad you’re alive too, Rawn. God, I don’t know what I would do without you. I’m so happy.”

Rawn grinned. “Rawn happy too.”

Maureen suddenly realized just how close they were. In her joy and excitement over the good news, she had totally forgotten all concepts of modesty. Her arms were hugging tightly around the rippling muscles of Rawn’s back, her naked breasts were squished against his hard chest, and her legs were straddling his powerful hips.

Something thumped between Maureen’s legs. Something long and smooth, hard and hot. Maureen gasped and scooted back. That’s when she saw the massive, ruddy erection jutting upward from Rawn’s pelvis. Her jaw hung slack.

“Oh my God…” she murmured. “Rawn, you’re not happy…you’re horny.”

Rawn gave her another doggy head tilt.

“Hor-nee?”

The blush filling Maureen’s cheeks was hot and intense, and it only got hotter the longer she looked at Rawn’s aroused cock. She gestured toward it with her hand.

“Yeah, horny. Like, your penis is, umm…”

Rawn looked down, and understanding lit up his face.

“Ohhh, horrr-nee.” Rawn grunted proudly. “Yes. Muh-reem give Rawn hor-nee pee-niss.”

Maureen almost choked.

Apparently, Rawn wasn’t the least bit embarrassed by his blatant arousal, nor did he have any reason to be. God, that thing was big. Gorgeous too. Maureen licked her lips nervously.

Rawn flashed his trademark grin again.

“Muh-reem hor-nee,” he said. It was a statement, not a question.

“I am?” Maureen blurted. “I mean, no I’m not!”

Rawn eyed her chest.

“Muh-reem nip-pulls hor-nee.”

Maureen glanced down and saw that her nipples were indeed very hard and pokey. She quickly covered her breasts with her hands, but her nipples were not the only signs of her arousal. There was also the slippery wetness between her thighs. That could be blamed on the humidity of the jungle—every inch of her skin was sticky with sweat—but Maureen had her doubts. And what about all those funny, feather-ticklish feelings inside her lower abdomen?

It was too much for her to process right now, so she quickly changed the subject.

“Rawn, we need to get back to the ship. The others are probably waiting for us.”

But Rawn shook his head.

“No,” he said firmly. “Them come here. We wait them.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes. Them talk. Rawn hear. Know them come.”

“But why aren’t they here already?” Maureen wondered aloud. “You found me so quickly yesterday.”

She shuddered as she thought about what would have happened if Rawn had not arrived when he had.

Rawn’s brow furrowed again. “Me come quick, but…but…” He raised his hands up, holding them far apart. “Big. Something big. Rawn jump, but…but…”

His shoulders sagged, and he let out a frustrated sigh at his inability to express himself clearly. Maureen moved closer and stroked his arm.

“Hey, it’s okay,” she said. “Anyway, if you say the guys are coming, I believe you. We’ll wait for them, okay? I do need Tristn’s medicine, but I feel okay for now. If they don’t come today, then tomorrow we’ll go back to the ship. Sound good?”

Rawn nodded. “Mm, good. Sound good.”

Maureen’s stomach rumbled, and she remembered that she hadn’t eaten anything since her last dinner aboard The Longshot. All the excitement of the past hours had made her forget about her hunger, but now it clawed painfully at her hollow stomach.

She went to the bad Raksha’s satchel and opened it. There were two wrapped packages inside, each about the same size and shape as an energy bar. She had seen them last night, but she had been reluctant to eat them without knowing exactly what they were. Now, however, she was weak with hunger. She needed to eat something.

Maureen tore one of the packages open. Its contents indeed resembled a brownish energy bar, but when she sniffed it, there was no odor.

Was it safe to eat? Hell, was it even food?

As if reading her thoughts, Rawn brought his face close and gave the bar a sniff.

“Safe,” he said. “Can eat. Safe.”

“You can tell that just by smelling it?”

Rawn nodded stoically.

Maureen shrugged. She had no reason to doubt Rawn’s judgement on the matter. And after everything she had been through, she was willing to believe just about anything. She took a bite from the bar and chewed. It was pretty bland, but it felt good to have something solid in her stomach.

Maureen offered the other bar to Rawn, but he refused. “Rawn no hunger-y. Muh-reem eat.”

She tried to change his mind, but Rawn insisted, and at last Maureen finished off the second bar as well.

“Now we just need some water,” she said. The humidity in the jungle was making her sweat, and she was starting to worry about dehydration again.

Rawn perked up, as if listening for some distant sound.

“Water,” Rawn said. “Come, come.”

Rawn started to walk away into the jungle, and Maureen was about to follow, but she hesitated.

“Rawn, wait,” she said, and pointed toward the escape pod. “What about him?”

Together, they walked over to the escape pod and inspected its still unconscious occupant. As far as Maureen could tell, the Raksha had not moved at all in the night, but when she looked closely, she could see his breath repeatedly fogging the clear surface of the pod near his mouth. His blood had dried into a dull, dark orange crust, and more of it had pooled on the floor. Her stomach became queasy when she looked at the missing tip of his ear, which she had bitten off in her fury.

“Safe,” Rawn said, patting the big log which was keeping the pod wedged against the other tree trunks. “Him no get out. Safe, safe.”

Maureen had to agree, the setup looked pretty secure. But she still couldn’t help wondering if she had made the right decision. She wasn’t worried about the Raksha getting out anymore. She was worried about subjecting him to a prolonged death. Yes, he was an evil bastard, but it was not in Maureen’s nature to be cruel.

Perhaps the merciful thing would be to kill him now, she thought. But she still could not bring herself to execute someone that way.

With a sigh, she turned back to Rawn.

“Okay, let’s go,” she said. “You lead the way.”