The Clone’s Mate by Susan Trombley
Thirty-Five
My heart leapt to my throat as Nirgal pulled me away from the tank, just in time for the front shield of it to slide upwards, emitting a cloud of vapor.
“Perhaps we should clean up before greeting Subject 34,” Nirgal whispered in my ear, cradling my back against his chest as his arms encircled my shoulders. “It will take some time for him to reorient himself, and you can make it back here by the time he returns to full awareness.”
“Are you sure he’s okay?” I stared at the tank in concern, disliking the sound the initial klaxon had made, though it had only been a brief alert before falling silent.
Still, lights were flashing on the tank, and I willed the vapor cloud to part further so I could see my beautiful monster more clearly, rather than just the dark, hulking shadow of his form in the misty confines of the tank.
“All his vitals remain in normal range. Trust me, Rhonda, I know Subject 34’s health status better than anyone. I would recognize if he were in distress. He will recover just fine, but it will take a bit longer.”
Reluctantly, I retreated from the living space, rushing to the closest bathroom, outfitted with state-of-the-art hygiene technology that cleaned me up in no time, though each passing moment felt like an eternity as I wanted to return to Subject 34. I needed to be there for him when he regained consciousness.
Refreshed and redressed in a fresh jumpsuit, a brief thought of clothes shopping in my head, I rushed out of the bathroom and collided with my green guy.
And he was my green guy this time. He caught me by my shoulders as I looked up into his eyes, noting that my Ilyan had returned.
“How does it feel to be back on Earth?” he said with a slight smile, dropping a quick kiss on my lips.
“How did you know where we were?” I had missed him more than I realized. I felt a wave of relief to see his softer, less hardened demeanor.
Like Nirgal, my Ilyan was arrogant, vain, and stuffy at times. But he was also capable of being charming, sexy, and affectionate. That last really meant a lot to me, especially with Ilyan, because it differentiated him greatly from his fracture, who had maintained a vast emotional distance during our journey, refusing to answer any personal questions I asked him.
“I left myself a message, apparently,” he said, his brows pulling together in a disconcerted frown. “I don’t like not remembering what I’ve done or where I’ve been. I suppose a message is better than leaving me in complete confusion.”
I touched the lines between his brows, and his lips tilted in amusement as it smoothed out beneath my fingertips. “I am happy to see that he has not made you despise me, my queen.” His smile faded as he studied my face, lifting a hand to brush my hair away from it. “I should not have retreated and let him gain control. The thought of you with Nirgal… it bothered me too much and I took a cowardly way out. I’m not accustomed to dealing with strong emotions. Especially the unpleasant ones. Can you ever forgive me for abandoning you when you needed me most?”
I embraced him, hugging him around his narrow waist with both arms as I laid my cheek against his chest. “I love you, Ilyan, and I really missed you. I’m so sorry that my being with Nirgal upset you so much. I don’t want you to be hurt by our relationship.”
I feared what the future would hold for all of us if Ilyan had such a difficult time with jealousy towards Nirgal. This was exactly the kind of issue I’d expect with our relationship, and I’d been afraid there would be fallout from it.
“No, you don’t have to apologize to me, Rhonda.” He pulled out of my embrace so he could meet my eyes, his inhumanly vivid green eyes warm and filled with regret. “Nirgal and I have history that has nothing to do with our relationship to you. You’re right that we need to deal with our past and get rid of the antagonism that keeps us from being the friends we once were. To be harem brothers, we can’t do anything less without bringing unnecessary distress to our mate. He knows this as well as I do.”
He kissed me again, and I protested when it was far too short to satisfy my hunger for him. “We will fix this, Rhonda, and I swear to you, I will never leave you like that again. I won’t hide from my problems any longer. You deserve better than having a coward in your harem.”
I put a finger over his lips, silencing any more self-denigrating things he might say. Clearly, I wasn’t the only one who might need therapy after all that we’ve been through.
I knew that I could never tell Ilyan what his fracture had said and done to me. He was already beating himself up over going dormant and letting Evil Ilyan take control. In the long run, it might have been the best decision because Evil Ilyan’s betrayal led to us returning to Earth. We had a home now, and a promise of safety, and possibly even the chance at making friends outside of our own little family, though I didn’t feel like I needed them.
“Rhonda!” Nirgal shouted from the living room. “Perhaps you’d like to join us now.”
The strained sound of his voice raised my eyebrows as I broke away from Ilyan and rushed down the hall to the living room.
“34, no!” I shouted in panic as I saw him holding Nirgal by the throat with one lower hand, both his pincers extended as my evil scientist dangled from his grip, his own hands clutching around Subject 34’s hand on his neck.
34 dropped Nirgal and turned to me, his eye shields parting to reveal his beautiful black eyes, even as his mandibles parted to show his beloved face.
I switched my attention from 34’s face, which was already shifting from a scowl to a more relaxed look of contentment to Nirgal, who had collapsed in a heap, coughing as he clutched his throat.
“Didn’t kill him,” my beloved monster said defensively.
I ran to him and hugged him tight around his waist, so accustomed to being cautious about his stinger markings that I avoided brushing against them out of habit.
His lower arms wrapped around my shoulders, his pincers retracting so his upper hands could touch my face as he looked down at me.
“I missed you so much!” I said fervently as I blinked back tears. “Are you okay? Are there any side effects of the stasis? Nausea? Headache? Disoriented vision?”
34 made his amused chittering sound as he lowered his head to claim my lips in a passionate kiss that I returned eagerly. My hands moved to slide up the chitin plates that covered his chest to his broad shoulders, then I caught the ridged back of his neck, pulling him closer to me. Our kiss deepened and his scent filled my head, driving me wild with arousal that soaked the crotch of my new jumpsuit.
His lower hands left my shoulders to part my jumpsuit, jerking it open so his hands could slip inside it to cup my breasts.
It occurred to me that I might end up spending a good portion of my life naked with three passionate alien lovers in my home. I had no problem with that. None whatsoever. I could save a fortune on clothes.
Subject 34 seemed in a hurry to remove mine, and that was something else I had no problem with. In fact, I even tried to help, shimmying my shoulders to pull the jumpsuit off them. He took it from there, his lower hands dragging the fabric down my body, unpeeling it from me like I was a banana. His mouth switched to my neck, then trailed lower as he exposed my naked flesh.
I moaned in pleasure at the feeling of his lips on me again, his hard, cool hands covered in their chitinous plates so different in feel from the warm hands of my other mates. He was so different from my Iriduans, his scent so delicious that it made me lose my head in a way that nothing else could.
He teased my nipple with his lips, then lifted his head to meet my eyes with his. “Are you hungry?”
I released a hard breath, nodding my head wordlessly. I know he meant literally, and I was fine in that regard, but yes, I was so hungry for his body that my stomach ached with anticipation to taste him and then feel him vibrating inside me.
His smile was slight. He rarely smiled widely because it threatened to split his bisected lips and he tried to keep that from me, as if I didn’t already know what his real mouth looked like.
As if he could ever repulse me.
I dropped to my knees before he fully released me. His lower hands cupped my breasts, continuing to tease my nipples as my knees hit the tile floor. My lower legs were still tangled in the jumpsuit, but I didn’t care, too caught up in my excitement and need for him.
Although I did spare a thought for becoming a nudist within my home, because it seemed more efficient at this point.
His erection already jutted from his armored body, and my lips closed hungrily around the head of it, my moan of pleasure bringing an answering one from him.
I still had so much to say to him. I wanted to discuss where we were, and what had happened while he’d been in stasis. Instead, his pheromones were too strong for me to think. All I could do was feel this powerful need for him as my lips coaxed fluid from his shaft.
He seemed more impatient and driven with a need to be inside me, flooding my mouth with his ejaculate with far less sucking than I would normally do for him. As soon as I’d swallowed, licking my lips as he pulled away, he pounced on me. He dragged me off the ground, then off my feet, his lower hands yanking the jumpsuit fully off my legs.
Before I could even suck in enough breath to protest—not that I would have—he parted my thighs and caught my hips in his lower hands, his upper hands firm around my waist to hold me up. The strength he possessed never ceased to amaze me and should terrify anyone who got on his bad side.
Which probably explained the abundance of caution the Akrellians took regarding Subject 34.
His entire body vibrated as he pulled my hips towards him, the head of his shaft slipping past my wet entrance. He impaled me in one swift thrust that had us both making guttural sounds of pleasure. My excitement left his shaft dripping from my slick as he began to move.
His hard hands kept me pinned as he thrust at a pace he knew I liked the most, the vibration over my g-spot bringing me quickly to orgasm. As I cried out with my release, I felt the flush of his ejaculate filling me. Even in my lust-addled brain, I recognized what that meant.
For the first time since I’d met him, Subject 34 had given me his seed.
