Page 51 of Loving the Alien Spy

Carrik finally releases me, but it’s a slow drag away and done with obvious reluctance. I smooth the hair back off his forehead, and my fingers brush against the blunt edge of his shorn horn. He groans and shudders.

“Did I hurt you?”

He shakes his head. “Not in the way you think.”

My cheeks heat, and I can’t help but glance down. Oh. I clear my throat. “Sorry.”

Carrik grins. “I am not. I’m not ashamed for people to know how much I desire my heart’s fire.”

“Oh my god.” A bubble of laughter spills out.

Our amusement slowly fades, though.

“I did not know you would be here,” he says. “Running into you was not planned, I swear.”

“No, I know it wasn’t. I’m actually supposed to be at breakfast with the girls, but a feeling inside me nudged me to come here.” Maybe a higher power had some hand in this.

“That same feeling brought me here as well,” Carrik says. “I spoke with my brother, the prince, and the commander this morning. And when I left the palace, I craved the only kind of peace I knew I’d find in this place since being by your side wasn’t an option.”

I stroke his cheek. “You know, it’s funny, but up until now, I don’t think I realized that was the sensation I felt in your presence. With the life I had, I’m not sure I knew what being at peace was. At least, not until this very moment. You quiet the chaos when I’m near you.”

Carrik leans into my touch. “I am glad we are able to provide this to each other. It is what mates are supposed to do.”

Carefully, I lower myself to his lap and lean my head on his shoulder. He cradles one arm behind my back, and the other rests over the top of my thighs so he can grip my hip in his hand. “You said you spoke to your brother this morning?”

He blows out a harsh breath. “We were present in the same room more than we actually spoke to each other is more accurate.”

“I’m sorry, Carrik. That has to be hard.”

At least a minute passes, and he still hasn’t said anything. I raise my head to look at him. He wears an indecipherable expression, but heat blazes from his eyes. “Do you have any idea what it does to me to hear my name fall from your lips?”

Considering the hardened length of his cock digging into the back of my thigh, I have a pretty good idea. I shift my weight a little and rub against it. Carrik’s hold on me tightens as his groan vibrates through my body, and the throbbing pulse of my clit starts up.

“You threaten all my control,” he rasps.

I clench down on nothing, the memory of him inside me not so long ago roaring to the front of my mind. “You say that as if it’s a bad thing.”

“It is when there is nothing I can do about it.”

Because there’s no way I can resist, I lean in and brush my lips across Carrik’s. “I’m pretty sure we can figure something out.”

I climb off his lap and reach out my hand. He hesitates for only a second before taking it and rising to his feet. I send a quick glance over my shoulder before leading him along the paths through the garden toward the street and then in the direction of the women’s housing facility.

Chapter 25

Carrik

The last time I let Lindsey lead me away like this from somewhere, we wound up back in her dwelling where we sealed our mate bond. From the heat in her gaze as she glances back at me and the direction we currently travel, I suspect that is where we are going now. I am happy to follow, but I don’t want her to regret having me in her bed once more.

“Are you sure you don’t need more time and space?”

“I’m sure,” Lindsey replies. “Between yesterday and today, I’ve done a lot of thinking. I even talked to my friends.”

“Linds…”

She comes to an abrupt halt and grips my hand between both of hers. “I didn’t break my promise, I swear. They still believe you’re Bannik.”

I let myself relax. I shouldn’t have assumed she’d told them. “I’m sorry. It was never my intention to place you in the position to lie to your friends. That was wrong of me.”