Lily and the Lion by Honey Phillips
Chapter Ten
Once again, Leotra retreated into the jungle. He wasn’t angry this time, only confused. He still had no idea what to make of Lily. The fact that she had been touching him so seductively argued that she was trying to manipulate him, but it did seem to be in an effort to get him to talk. And he—and his ever-ready cock—had enjoyed the game.
But then he had been so close to her delicious little cunt, close enough to see the sparkle of her essence in those red curls. She was so clearly sexually receptive, wet and ready for him. He couldn’t detect even a hint of mating hormone beneath her intoxicating fragrance, but how was it possible? Was he just lucky enough to have encountered her during her heat? And if that was so, how long would it last? Or was it all some deliciously baited trap?
His every instinct urged him to trust her, but his instincts had been wrong before.
Tonight.Tonight, they would share the moni sap and he would find out the truth. In the meantime, he would hunt for her. Although there was enough smoked meat to provide a second meal, his female deserved a fresh kill. Fuck. No, not his female. At least not yet…
When he returned to the clearing, she hadn’t moved from where he left her. Her hand was clenched around the knife, and her eyes were scanning the trees. Fuck, he hadn’t intended to scare her. He had thought that having the knife would reassure her.
But even though he hated the idea that she had been scared, he loved the way her eyes lit up when she saw him.
“There you are. And—oh my God, is that a bunny rabbit?”
The word didn’t translate and he lifted his kill by its long ears. “Sungura.”
She waved her hand, her face pale. “If you say so. It looks like a bunny to me. I really don’t think I’m cut out for primitive living.”
Perhaps it was time to bring this expedition to a close. His imagination immediately conjured up a picture of her sprawled naked against his sheets while he fed her the choicest tidbits at his disposal. His finger hovered over the communicator concealed in his loincloth, but then he pulled it away. What if this was just the beginning? Would a demand for clothing and jewelry follow?
He had never seen an avaricious look in her eyes, and her muttered comment had been barely audible, but once again his suspicions were triggered. The sooner he knew the truth, the better. With that in mind, he began cleaning his kill.
Lily studiously averted her eyes as he did, but when he wrapped pieces of the meat in more leaves and buried them in the hot coals, she came to join him, studying the cooking process with interest.
“Did your grandfather teach you that as well?”
He nodded wistfully. He had spent so much time here with his grandfather while the older man taught him the ways of the jungle. It had always been just the two of them—his grandfather would have laughed himself breathless at the size of the retinue that usually accompanied his father. And now him. When had that changed? About the time he reached maturity and his father began inserting himself into Leotra’s life.
Lily patted his tail, and this time her touch was sympathetic rather than seductive.
“I’m sorry. You must miss him very much.”
He nodded, then frowned. How would she know that they had been out of touch for the last few years? Time to start asking questions of his own.
“You?”
“You mean do I have a grandfather? I suppose I must have, but I never met him.” A mixture of sadness and anger crossed her face. “I bet my parents weren’t any more interested in their parents than they were in me.”
“Not interested?” He almost groaned at his response, but she was gazing out into the jungle again, her expression distant.
“Let’s just say I’m not sure why they ever bothered to have a child. Either it was an accident, or they thought that it was a requirement.”
Her words created an unwilling spark of sympathy. He barely remembered his mother, just a fleeting smile and a trace of perfume, but he was quite sure that his father had only sired a child because it was expected of him. He hadn’t shown any interest in Leotra either, but at least he’d had his grandfather. It didn’t seem as if Lily had had anyone.
“Sorry,” he said softly, patting her hand the same way she had patted his tail.
She shrugged, clearly dismissing the memories. “It’s not your fault. Some people should just never have children. I’m probably one of them.”
Despite her denial, he could easily envision her lush and glowing with his cub inside her. His cock reacted enthusiastically to the image, a sudden deep, instinctual urge to mate her and fill her with his seed sweeping over him. Thank the gods he’d had his fertility restricted since his fourteenth birthday. Since it would be the easiest way to trap him, he had never trusted a female to prevent a pregnancy.
“More,” he urged her.
“More what?”
“More you. Life.”
Her puzzled frown disappeared in a triumphant laugh. “Ha. That’s three words in a row. I’m winning you over.”
She most certainly is, he thought.
While the sunjura meat cooked, he started working on the skin. Another one of his grandfather’s lessons—no part of a kill should be wasted. Another tenet to which his father paid little heed. He had no hesitation in killing an animal for just one specific organ.
Why was he thinking so much about his grandfather? Perhaps because this had always been their special time together. He frowned as he realized just how long it had been since he’d seen the older male.
“Is everything all right?” Lily’s soft fingers brushed across his arm.
“Thinking,” he said with a shrug.
“I don’t suppose you want to share those thoughts?”
He actually would have liked to get her perspective, but not yet.
“More life,” he said instead, poking her gently on her chest and fighting back the urge to linger on her soft skin.
She had been telling him about a singer who had enticed her away from her home at what seemed to be a disturbingly young age.
“So then he decided he didn’t want a relationship anymore,” she continued, smiling ruefully. “I was such a child. I thought my heart was going to break.”
He had taken her from her home and then rejected the mating? The unworthy male’s behavior appalled him—and yet she was free as a result. Or was she? She certainly hadn’t mentioned anyone else, and he found himself curiously reluctant to ask. Perhaps it was time to try the ripened sap.
He finished scraping the fur and stretched it out to dry in the late afternoon sunlight, then collected the leaf holding the moni sap. The liquid had thickened and ripened just as he planned. As he brought it back over to her, he was seized by an unexpected reluctance. He wanted to believe she was exactly who she seemed to be. He didn’t want to test her, and if she was lying, he wasn’t sure he wanted to know the truth.
She looked up at him expectantly, her beautiful face open and trusting, but the very strength of his desire to believe her made him suspicious. Perhaps she was drugging him after all. Was her scent so seductive because she was using some new mating hormone?
He sat next to her on the rock, offering her the leaf, and their hands brushed as she took it from him. Even that fleeting touch sent an ache of desire straight to his cock. Surely, this could not be a natural reaction.
“Mmm, is this what we had before? It tastes different somehow.”
She licked her lips, and he was mesmerized by the sight of that small pink tongue. It took him much longer than it should have before he realized that she had asked him a question.
“Ripened.” His voice sounded hoarse.
She handed the leaf back to him, and he took a thirsty gulp as she studied him. Then she tapped thoughtfully at her chin with her small, blunt nail.
“You know, ripened isn’t exactly a basic word. You can speak better than you have been, can’t you?”
“Yes.” Fuck. He hadn’t considered the fact that the truth effect would work on him as well.
“I see. Then why aren’t you talking to me?”
“Trap.” The word escaped before he could prevent it, but he slammed his mouth close.
A tiny furrow appeared on her brow, and he longed to smooth it away. Instead, he tried to change the subject.
“After singer?”
“And now you’re changing the subject. You have a lot of secrets, don’t you, Leo?”
Unwilling to trust his voice, he simply shrugged, and she frowned again.
“I’m not sure why you’re so interested in my ordinary life.”
“Interested in you.”
Perhaps she read the truth on his face, because her expression softened.
“You really can be very sweet.”
He fought back a feeling of guilt as she continued with her story. He really did not like that sensation, but it only intensified as she spoke. Although she tried to make light of it, from what he could tell her life had been a long series of betrayals. She had never found a home or a worthy male to protect her. The only time she revealed any genuine affection was when she spoke of the two females who had also been taken by the slavers.
By the time she finished her story, night had fallen. They had finished their dinner, along with the last of the moni sap, and he had no doubt at all that she was exactly who she claimed to be. Which meant that he no longer needed to resist the temptation she presented.
He would take care of her, he vowed. He would provide her with suitable clothing and jewelry and introduce her into his social circle. But first, he would attempt to find her friends. It should present little problem for a male with his resources, and he could already anticipate her gratitude.
He opened his mouth to tell her of his plans for her, and she crawled into his lap. His thoughts shattered as all the blood in his body went to his cock. Her delicate skin was softer than his finest silk robes and infinitely more enticing. She nestled into his arms, and his head spun with her provocative scent and the last remnants of the sap.
