Roran Read online

  “I am pleased to meet you, Becca Clayton.” The android held up his hand, which opened to expose a wand with a light at the end. He passed it up and down her body. “Most of the values are within normal parameters, with some minor vitamin deficiencies to be expected after prolonged stasis.”

  “Prolonged stasis? How long?” She looked like she wasn’t sure she wanted to know.

  “Approximately twenty-five to fifty star-spans,” Feenix answered automatically.

  “Thank you, Feenix,” said Roran. “Please return to the bridge.”

  “Yes, Captain.” The android did an about-face and walked out of the room.

  Chapter Four

  Roran stood for a moment, to pull his com tablet out of his pocket. He sat back down beside her, and he unfolded the screen. He used a finger to flip through Becca’s documents instead of voice command. Then he found it. Thirty star-spans! Gods, Becca had been in stasis that long.

  “What?” she asked, watching his face as he read.

  “I’m afraid it’s bad news.”

  “How long?”

  Roran wished he didn’t have to tell her, but she had every right to know.

  “It says you were in stasis for thirty star-spans after they abducted you.”

  “What is a star-span?”

  “It’s the time it takes the planet Farseek to orbit its star, which is 400 rotations of the planet.”

  “No! Oh, my god,” she exclaimed. “I don’t know what that is in Earth years. It could be more than one hundred years of Earth time. My parents would be dead, probably my brothers, too. I was dead to them a long time ago. They probably thought I was murdered and buried in some remote location where they would never find me.”

  Roran couldn’t deny it. “I am so sorry, Becca.” He knew; nothing he could say would make her feel better. There had been experiments in time travel, but no real breakthroughs. Those that left never came back. It was classified anyway. He couldn’t tell her even if he wanted to. But he didn’t.

  Becca was his. She just needed time to get used to the idea, to understand solmatu. Now, she looked utterly bereft, again sitting with her arms around her legs pulled up to her chest, resting her cheek on her knees. He imagined she was brooding over the reality of her situation.

  Roran couldn’t change that; he could only try to help her get through it. He didn’t need this distraction while he was trying to hunt down Haemeg’s killers. Things could get dangerous, as they often did on his assignments. Leaving her behind was not an option once he had sensed her.

  She was everything he had dreamed in the someday he imagined when he found his mate and settled back on Farseek to make a family. Of course, he would have to live that long for it to come to fruition. Just what was the Maker trying to tell him by throwing Becca into the mix.

  He’s seen the vids and heard the reports from the aftermath of the attack on his homeworld. The Farseek, where he was born and raised, no longer existed. Becca’s world was no longer the one she remembered either. Judging by the sadness in her eyes, she knew.

  “Hey, there’s no sense brooding about it, Becca. We can’t change it. Did they even feed you yet? You’re a little on the thin side, but like Feenix said, being in stasis long term will do that to anybody.”

  “I had some kind of drink and a couple of bars that tasted like dog biscuits.”

  “The packaged food I have is a little better than that. First, I will see if I can find you something to wear. I was in such a hurry to get off Ideshan; I didn’t even think to stop and buy you at least a simple jumpsuit,” he said. “I think I might have some leggings that fit any size and shirts. They will be big, but they will cover you until our next planetfall. I’ll be right back.”

  Roran got up from the bunk and left her sitting on it.

  Becca blinked at the prick of threatening tears in her eyes. She couldn’t let herself cry again because she might not be able to stop.

  Roran was back in a few minutes with a couple of black t-shirts and a couple of pairs of gray leggings. The leggings looked small but were stretchy enough to fit him, so Becca thought they would fit. He laid them on the bunk beside her, then backed toward the door and stopped.

  “Let me get this horrible collar off; then, I’ll let you get dressed while I heat some food.” After he paid for her, the alien programmed the collar to release with his fingerprint. The clasp popped open, and he took it off carefully so the sharp corners wouldn’t scrape her skin. Opening a drawer by the bunk, he put the leash and collar into it.

  “When you come out, go to the right and take the next right. The mess is the last door on the right. It will be opened. This door will open when you stand in front of it.”

  Becca nodded, and Roran turned and left.

  At the moment, he seemed patient and concerned. But that could change if she didn’t come around to becoming the bond mate he wanted. Not that he wasn’t attractive. He was sexy as hell and seemed like he could get mean if he had to. Yet, she hadn’t missed the warmth in his brown eyes when he looked at her.

  He seemed like the type who would coax her into intimacy rather than force her. It wasn’t as if she were a virgin or anything. Her last boyfriend was a loser, but he was good in bed; so good he liked to spread himself around.

  Pulling apart the hook-loop closure on his jacket, Becca slipped it off, laid it on the bunk, and put on one of the black shirts. They weren’t exactly like t-shirts, but the material was close to the same texture and stretched.

  It was about three sizes too big, with a vee neck that plunged a little too deep between her breasts. Pulling down on the back of the shirt helped some. A couple of safety pins would solve the problem. The leggings were a better fit, more of a one size fits all.

  The floor was cold under her bare feet. She was thankful for the clothes and that Roran removed the metal collar and leash from around her neck. A chill of apprehension shook her body as she remembered the pain it sent through her. She had tried to remove it herself, but it zapped her fingers when she touched it.

  As she left her cabin, she could hear a soft hum that vibrated slightly against her bare feet. The smell of food lured her toward the galley kitchen with the eat-in bar.

  “Have a seat.” Roran gestured at the row of stools along the bar. A soft buzzer sounded, and he turned to open a door in the bank of steel cabinets on the wall behind him. He set two trays on the bar, one in front of her and the other by his seat.

  The food trays reminded her of the microwave meals she kept in her freezer since she’d been cooking for only herself. It looked like a stew with brown gravy and vegetables with uniform cubes that might be meat.

  “Mystery meat stew?” she quipped as he came around the counter and took the seat beside hers.

  “Cultured krajem. It’s a four-legged reptilian herbivore. But we don’t kill them. We harvest their muscles cells and culture them artificially.” He handed her a spork, a spoon with four short tines.

  Becca took a bite of the steamy concoction. “Mm, not bad. It tastes somewhere between pork and lamb---livestock on Earth. They are killed for their meat. I think I like your way better.” She took another bite.

  She kept sneaking short glances at the man beside her as they ate. The stools at the counter were spaced just right, so they didn’t rub elbows as they sat at the bar, but he was close enough for her to catch his scent. Something about it and him made it plausible to imagine having sex with him.

  Almost the second she thought it, her body reacted in response. Her nipples tightened, and her pussy clenched. Her clit tingled with sexual awareness of the gorgeous male sitting next to her.

  Roran paused the spork full of his food midway to his mouth and set it back down on the tray. He turned toward her, and the heat in his gaze told her that he sensed her arousal.

  Becca’s cheeks heated, and she had to look away. Just because she was thinking about it, didn’t mean she was ready to do it. Now, she knew it was only a matter of time.

  As
she sat hunched over her food, staring into space, she suddenly straightened as she felt his hand resting on her back.

  “Hey, it’s okay. I would never hurt you or force you to mate if you don’t want it. But it will happen eventually, and it’s perfectly normal with solmatu.”

  Becca nodded her head but couldn’t look at him. She was still having a hard time wrapping her head around the profound change in her circumstances. Life as she knew it was over, more than forty years over. Even if she could find her way back to Earth, things would never be the same.

  Her parents could be dead, never knowing what happened to her, and her brothers would be retired and maybe even grandparents. That life was over. The realization hit her again, full force. A lump welled in her throat, and the prick of tears stung her eyes.

  Becca couldn’t let herself start crying again. This was her reality now, alone on a spaceship with the hottest guy she’d ever met. She drew in her breath and slowly let it out a few times before she finally looked at Roran.

  Chapter Five

  Roran could see she was having a hard time getting control of her emotions. Everything she cared about was ripped away from her, not unlike what was happening to his people on Farseek. Though his duty had removed him from life on Farseek star-spans ago, knowing it was all in ruins, was a little hard to accept.

  More recently, the death of his oldest and dearest friend had brought profound pain to his life. It still hurt, but the pain was turning to rage at what they did to Haemeg. They didn’t just kill him. They tortured him until he died.

  Roran could see that they were both in a pretty bad place. She slid off her stool almost at the same time he did. Thinking she might bolt, he took her head between his hands, tilted it back and claimed her mouth in a heated kiss.

  Becca moaned a sigh and opened for him when his tongue probed between her lips. As she responded, he put his arms around her and pulled her body tight to his. She raised herself on her toes and pressed her breasts against the hard wall of his chest. Then she lifted one leg and rested it against his lower back.

  He groaned into her mouth and gripped her buttocks, pressing his erection into her belly. She felt so good! As he held her pressed to him, she brought her other leg around him and clasped her feet together around his lower back.

  Their kiss went on and on, their tongues stroking and exploring.

  When Roran finally parted his lips from hers, they were both panting with arousal. Moving around the stool he’d occupied, he set her on the counter beside his unfinished meal. He was still holding her as she looked up at him frowning.

  “Why did you stop?”

  “Is this what you want?” he asked, sliding his hands under her shirt and up to cup her breasts.

  She made a little gasp as he flicked his thumbs over her taut nipples. “Oh,” she sighed as her inner walls clenched, and her clit throbbed. “Yes,” she murmured.

  Becca wasn’t sure she even liked him. There was a hardness about him that hinted he could be frightening. Right then, he was all she had. She wanted to forget that she was millions of miles from home, with little hope of ever seeing her family again.

  Her mind was telling her, ‘fuck it,’ and her body was telling her to fuck him. They could figure out the rest later.

  With her affirmative response, Roran pushed up her shirt to expose her breasts; she raised her arms to let him take it off. By the look on his face, he seemed to like what he saw.

  He leaned her back in his arms and lowered his mouth to cover her nipple. Every sensation went straight to her core as he alternated between them, sucking and flicking his tongue over each tip. Her hands went to the back of his head, stroking his close-cropped hair and caressing his neck and shoulders, arching her back to offer greater access. He suckled both nipples at length before he pulled her upright.

  Roran quickly pulled his shirt off over his head. He discarded the shirt and wrapped his arms around her and pressed her chest to his. Becca made a pleased sound in her throat and wound her arms around his neck, parting her lips as he lowered his mouth toward hers.

  She closed her eyes, basking in their skin to skin contact, and the heat of his tongue swirling around hers. It had been so long since she had been in the arms of a man. Her demanding nursing job had left little time for dates or relationships.

  She wasn’t thinking, only feeling the pleasure of his hands and lips on her. And his hard, muscular body pressed against her, the warmth of his skin on hers.

  While still kissing her, Roran worked at getting her pants off. He lifted her and pushed them down over her buttocks. Then he paused to cup and knead her breasts, alternately pinching and tweaking her nipples. He finally ended that soul-searing kiss long enough to remove her pants and then his own.

  Becca caught her breath when she glanced down at the size of his hard cock, pointing right at her throbbing core. Then she looked into his eyes again, and she almost felt mesmerized by the raw need she saw there.

  He moved in close, gripped her legs, and lifted them to fold around him. Cupping her buttocks, he lifted her and turned to press her against the wall. The length of his cock was cradled in her slick channel. Lowering her and pulling back just a little poised the head of his cock at her tight wet entrance.

  Becca used her legs to draw him into her. The tight fit bordered on pain, and it felt exquisite. Then he was balls deep inside her, just holding himself there while he claimed another kiss. All rational thought seemed to escape her. She only knew the feel of him filling her with his cock and his tongue, his body pressing against hers.

  He held her there, kissing her slowly and thoroughly, making her clench around him. Finally, he drew back and slammed his hips against hers as he drove his cock into her. He thrust into her at a perfect angle, hitting her clit and her sweet spot every time.

  For a while, they forgot everything that happened before they came together. Their bodies ebbed and flowed together in a hard, fast sexual rhythm that quickly took them to release, Becca came just before Roran shot his hot seed against her womb.

  Both cried out as their mutual climax ebbed and flowed. Becca remembered thinking later that sex had never felt so good. Roran drew back, searching her face then smiled at her. She couldn’t help smiling at him.

  Then she looked away as it sank in what they had just done. Spontaneous sex with a near stranger was not something she had ever done before. Then she had never had sex with anyone as hot as Roran.

  “Hey, look at me,” he said gently.

  It was hard not to with their bodies still joined. Becca blinked and slowly raised her eyes to his.

  His gaze was warm as he touched his lips to hers in a light kiss. “I meant for us to get a little better acquainted before we got to this. But I could see that we were both a little overwhelmed by recent events. I thought if I kissed you, it would make us both feel better.”

  “Only you couldn’t stop, and I couldn’t either,” she whispered.

  “It has to do with pheromones. Solmatu is at least partly a biological response that attracts us to each other,” he explained. “In case you hadn’t noticed, I get hard nearly every time I am close to you.”

  This time, Roran closed his eyes and turned his head. He drew in a breath and met her gaze again.

  “I should have asked you before I claimed you and spurted my seed inside. You should have had a say before I chose for you. Now, I can only do the honorable thing and give you my pledge.”

  Becca gave him a puzzled look.

  “I am yours, and you are mine as long as I draw breath. We are one as solmatu.”

  She watched his mouth and then his eyes as he said the words. Her mouth dropped open as his meaning sank in.

  “Now, you say it,” he prompted.

  What was she supposed to say with their naked bodies plastered together and his cock balls deep inside her? Even as she thought it, her inner walls clenched around him. Oh, what the hell? She was millions of miles from home, which she would probably never see
again. She at least knew she liked fucking him. Besides, he did rescue her from a life of slavery.

  She gave a resigned sigh then said, “I am yours, and you are mine as long as I draw breath. We are one as solmatu.”

  Roran smiled faintly, and then he kissed her, a deep probing kiss that she felt to her core. She clenched on his cock that was either hard again or still, which encouraged him to start fucking her again.

  In any case, she had just pledged to be his mate until one of them died, so why not hang on and enjoy the ride?

  Chapter Six

  Becca opened her eyes and blinked a couple of times to bring her surroundings into focus. She stretched and looked around. She was lying in a bed; naked save for the lightweight bed covering. A fresh shirt and leggings lay on the bed beside her.

  She sat up on the edge of it with her feet on the bare floor. This must be Roran’s cabin, she decided. Instead of a pulldown bunk, this room had a regular bed fastened to the floor.

  It was bigger than the other one and looked like it had more storage and a bathroom complete with a shower.

  Becca reached for the shirt and pulled it on over her head, then put on the stretch leggings. Not surprising, she felt a bit sore as she walked into the bathroom to empty her bladder. When she emerged, she saw that the bed was made, leaving no evidence of the lovemaking for what seemed like hours.

  After the hard, fast fucking in the galley, Roran had taken her to that bed. There she experienced a whole different side of him. He nearly drove her insane, starting at her mouth, then licking, nipping and kissing his way down her body, all the way to her feet. He dragged his mouth up and down both legs before he returned and settled his mouth on her aching clit.

  Becca was so aroused by then; she could only stand his licking and sucking for a minute or two before she was screaming in ecstasy. Her core clenched at the memory. That was just a prelude for what else Roran had in store for her.

  Compared to Roran, the few lovers she’d had were rank amateurs when it came to pleasing a woman. He had such control that he’d held her on the verge of orgasm for so long it nearly drove her mad. Each kiss, each caress, and each thrust of his cock built her arousal to a fever pitch as he took them both to climax.