Avelyn and the Alien Daddy (Intergalactic Brides 3) (8 page)

“You actually go out in public in that?” he asked, not sure he liked the thought.

The smile dimmed from her face. “You don’t like it.”

Not like it? He liked it so much, he wanted to remove it from her body -- with his teeth -- but he wasn’t sure he should tell her that. She’d obviously gone to a lot of trouble to dress up for him and here he was making her feel bad.

“I’ll take it off and return it,” she said, a dejected look on her face as she turned from him.

Thrace reached out and placed a hand on her arm, turning her to face him. He stepped closer, curled his fingers under her chin and lifted her face. There was uncertainty in her eyes and he wanted to erase it, but he was a little nervous. He wanted to kiss her, more than anything, but what if he wasn’t any good at it? He didn’t exactly have a lot of practice.

“I like the dress, Avelyn. A little too much. What I don’t like is the idea of other men seeing you dressed in it.”

Thrace lowered his head and pressed his lips to hers. Just a gentle brush. He did it again and felt her melt against him. As her lips parted, he deepened the kiss, curving an arm around her waist and pulling her tightly against his aching body. His cock throbbed in his pants as the softness of her back brushed against his skin. It was so easy to imagine her naked, spread out before him like a buffet. And feast on her he would! All damn night if she’d let him.

He felt her hands fist his leather vest as her curves pressed against him. He wanted her touch so badly he ached for it. Thrace pulled away, knowing if he didn’t stop now, nothing would keep him from stripping her and taking her right there on the living room floor. He didn’t think they’d even make it to the couch; he wanted her that badly. He’d been tormented with dreams of her nightly since their first meeting and now he was so close to making it a reality -- if he didn’t screw up.

“I should shower and change.” Was that his voice? He cleared his throat. “You spent a lot of time getting dressed up. I’d hate for us not to make it out of the suite tonight.”

“I wouldn’t exactly call it a loss if we didn’t,” she said, a soft smile curving her lips. “But yes, it was a lot of work to look this way and I’d like to enjoy it a little bit longer.”

“I’ll hurry.”

He walked away while he still could and closed his bedroom door behind him. He pulled his light gray leather pants out of the closet, tossed them over the foot of the bed and then flipped through the silk tunics he owned, which were few. He selected a soft teal and placed it on the bed with the pants before stripping out of his clothes. His shower was the fastest in the history of showers, and he made sure every knot and tangle was out of his hair after drying it and then braided it.

He typically didn’t wear artificial scents, but someone had gifted him with a nice bottle of cologne. He spritzed a bit on his neck and wrists, hoping Avelyn liked it. The female who had given it to him as a thank-you had winked and said it smelled divine, had even tried to get him to put some on right then. Of course, he wasn’t entirely certain she hadn’t wanted him to wear her too.

In the bedroom, he quickly dressed, but paused over his boots. He couldn’t wear work boots with his nice clothes, but he hated the dressier ones required at banquets and such. They tended to pinch his toes. Then again, what was a little pain if he got to spend a nice evening out with Avelyn? He’d called to make a reservation at what he had been assured was a top-notch seafood restaurant. He hoped she liked shellfish and wasn’t allergic, he hadn’t thought to ask.

He paused with his hand on the doorknob. His heart was racing in his chest. It wasn’t so much due to nerves as it was anticipation. This was the night he was going to make her his in every way possible. The council may not have given their approval yet, but he had no doubt they would. He’d given them sound information. Borgoz was the only one he’d worried about, but he felt sure his little bit of blackmail would sway the man in his favor. He was tempted to leak the information anyway, just to save Kelvyk from an unpleasant future, but honor forbid him from doing it. It was one thing to put a little pressure on the Chief Councillor but another to make trouble for Kelvyk.

Thrace opened the door and smiled when he saw her standing at the window, watching the moon rise. She was so beautiful; she took his breath away. He’d read that saying in an Earth book and it had stuck with him, though he had not really understood it until this moment. He was experiencing a lot of firsts with Avelyn.

He’d never felt desire before. He’d had a need, but it hadn’t been because of any particular woman. The females at the floating brothel were all right, but nothing special. Convenient, that’s what they were. He’d gotten hard seeing their naked bodies, but he’d never ached from wanting someone so much. Never before had the mere thought of a woman touching him, even innocently, been enough to set him on fire. His cock stayed hard all the damn time around Avelyn. A smile. A glance. The way she brushed her hair away from her face. Every move she made was seductive.

He cleared his throat to get her attention. “Are you ready? Our reservation is for seven and it’s nearly that time now. I don’t want to be late or we’ll lose our table.”

“I’m ready.”

He crooked his arm, like he’d seen men do in the movies, and waited until her delicate hand settled on his forearm. Thrace escorted her out of the room, down the elevator, and out to the waiting limo. He’d made sure his regular driver was available tonight and would be able to wait for them at the restaurant. On the drive there, he watched her, but covertly. She fascinated him, especially this side of her. He’d never seen her look quite so elegant. He was nearly afraid to touch her, for fear of messing up her hair or the touch of make-up she wore. He hadn’t seen any in her bathroom the other day and assumed she’d just purchased it. Usually he detested make-up on a woman, but the little bit she wore just accented her beauty.

The limo drew to a stop in front of the restaurant; Thrace slid out and then held out a hand for Avelyn. After helping her from the vehicle, he placed her hand in the crook of his arm again and escorted her inside. A doorman opened the elaborate doors for them and they swept inside, drawing the attention of everyone nearby. For once, he doubted it was his unusual coloring. Avelyn was stunning tonight, and he knew he was the envy of every man there.

The hostess showed them to a table near the window; a small candle flickered in the center. Menus were placed at their settings and Thrace held Avelyn’s chair for her. He’d seen men do that before and hoped it was the right thing to do. He wanted this night to be special -- perfect -- and hoped he didn’t mess up. He’d studied for this moment and ordered a bottle of red wine. Did Avelyn like wine? If not, lesson learned. He’d never tried it himself, but humans seemed to like it well enough. It seemed every couple in the restaurant had a glass of the stuff.

“Are we celebrating something?” she asked as she took a sip.

“In a manner of speaking. I called the Chief Councillor this afternoon, once I had the paperwork from Xonos. He’s going to present our case to the rest of the council, but it may be a week before we hear anything.”

“So, we’re celebrating that our case is being presented?”

“That and… I did some thinking. If the council won’t approve our mating, then I will break from the council. Either way, we’re going to be mated. If you’ll have me.”

She stared at him, blinking several times.

He set his glass down. “Did I say something wrong?”

“No, it’s just… you’d leave everything you know just to be with me?”

“Of course.” He frowned, not understanding what she found so confusing about it. He wanted her. She wanted him. They would be together. It was that simple. At least, in his mind it was. He’d heard Earth females could complicate a situation if given the opportunity.

“But, Thrace… you can’t leave your people, your job. Where would we live? Where would you work? I… I can’t be the reason you lose everything.”

He reached across the table and took her hand, noticing her distress. “Avelyn, I would do anything to be with you. Don’t you realize that I don’t care about my job or anything else if you aren’t by my side? You’re perfect for me in every way. I want you in my life, and as more than my nanny. I dream of going to sleep at night with you in my arms. Of waking to your smiling face.”

A trace of a smile graced her lips. “You might rethink that last one. I don’t wake up smiling. I don’t smile until I’ve had my coffee. I’m actually very grumpy in the morning, but you’re usually gone by the time I get up with Lily. I know it’s only been a few days since you brought me here, but sometimes I forget that. It feels like I’ve been watching over Lily longer than that.”

“Then I’ll have a cup waiting for you when I wake you in the morning.” He smiled. “I’ll even serve you breakfast in bed.”

“Oh, now you’re just taking things too far.” She laughed. “But I may hold you to the cup of coffee. I’m a bear without it.”

He smoothed his thumb along her hand. “Avelyn, will you have me as your mate? I don’t care that you can’t have children; there are plenty out there who need homes, like Lily. I promise to do everything in my power to give you a good life. I may not be as rich as your previous husband, but I promise that you’ll never want for anything. I’ll buy a house. Clothes. Give you anything your heart desires, if you’ll only agree to be mine.”

“Thrace.” Tears shimmered in her eyes. “You don’t have to promise to buy me things to win my affection. Do you know why I would say yes? It isn’t because you have billions of dollars, which by the way is more money than my husband ever had. It isn’t because you want to buy me whatever my heart desires. I would say yes because of the respect you show me, the gentle way you touch me, and the wonderful father you are to Lily. I know that if we are blessed enough to adopt more children, you would treat them the same way you treat Lily and me, and they would be very lucky to call you dad.”

“Does that mean you’re saying yes?” he asked, his heart pounding in his chest.

“It means I’m saying yes. But… I really hope your council comes through. I would hate for you to turn your back on everything you know just to be with me. I’m not sure I’m worth that.”

He lifted her hand and kissed the back of it. “Avelyn, you’re worth that and so much more. I don’t understand the emotions I feel when I’m around you. There’s always this anxious feeling in the pit of my stomach; my heart races out of control, and I’m always afraid of saying the wrong thing. But most of all, not a moment goes by that I don’t think about kissing you… “ He kissed her hand again. “And making you mine in all ways.”

He felt the tremor race through her.

“I think about those things too.”

A waiter came over and took their orders. Neither had looked at the menu, and at that particular moment, Thrace couldn’t have cared less what he ate. Even Avelyn seemed to open the menu and order the first thing she saw. Did she want this meal to end as quickly as he did? Suddenly, the most important thing in the world was getting her back to the hotel and out of that sexy damn dress. Not the shoes though… he wanted those on.

“I wonder how Lily is,” Avelyn mused. “Brielle assured me she would call if there was a problem.”

Thrace hoped like hell there wouldn’t be a problem, not tonight. He had plans for Avelyn, plans that involved no clothes and lots of naked skin -- and no babies! If things went the way he hoped, he’d make love to her all night and into the morning. He wanted to watch the sunrise with her, feed her breakfast, and then take her back to bed. Just the thought of having her completely at his mercy was enough to make his cock thicken. He may only have experience with prostitutes, and there might be a small part of him that worried he wouldn’t be able to please her, but he knew that being with Avelyn would be earth shattering. Another Earth phrase he couldn’t wait to experience.

Their food arrived and he noticed that she ate as quickly as he did, with little conversation between them. He nearly jumped and choked on a shrimp when he felt something slide up his leg. Judging by the naughty look in Avelyn’s eyes, it was her foot. As discreetly as he could, he reached under the tablecloth and snagged her foot. A smile blossomed across her face and quickly changed to one of pure longing as he stroked the delicate arch with his thumb.

Avelyn jerked her foot away and he smirked, knowing he’d gotten to her. She got to him every damn day, but it was fun playing with her like this, seeing just how far he could wind her up before getting her back to the hotel. The limo ride home would prove interesting.

With her eyes fastened on his, she licked her lips, and then used the tip of her tongue to lick the butter sauce off her shrimp. His cock jerked and his grip on his fork tightened. She teased the morsel along her lips before gently sucking it into her mouth and chewing, her lips glistening from the butter. It made him wonder if she’d look the same way with his cum on her lips. Ever since he’d seen the video of the woman taking the man’s cock in her mouth, he’d wanted to try it. And he couldn’t think of anyone he’d rather share it with than Avelyn, assuming she didn’t find it distasteful. He’d never force her to do anything.

As she pushed her plate away, he waved to the waiter and asked for their check. The bill was around one hundred dollars and he had no idea how much to tip, so he just stuck two one hundreds on top before rising to his feet. Anxious to get Avelyn home, he hoped the money was adequate. She smiled as she slid her hand into his and he wrapped an arm around her waist as he guided her out to the waiting limo.

Thrace had no sooner closed the door and settled on the seat than he found his arms full of soft, willing woman. She plastered her lips to his, her hands roaming his shoulders and chest. Thrace kissed her with a hunger he’d never before experienced, devouring her lips as his hands slid up and down her bare back before settling on her rounded hips.

Avelyn squirmed in his lap and then threw one leg over him. As she straddled his legs, his cock pulsed in time with his heartbeat. Her palms slid up his chest then down before returning to his shoulders. Her eyes glittered in the dim lighting and he stared at her plump lips, wanting another taste. But there was something he wanted even more.