Read War Games (Alien Instincts) Online
Authors: Cynthia Lore
Tags: #alpha male, #love, #sci-fi, #government, #aliens, #space travel, #romance, #fantasy, #military, #erotica
“What’s wrong Markar?” Her voice came out like a whisper. She had meant to say that louder. There were tears in his eyes, and the large man was shaking. “Are you okay?” Rae asked. Her throat was so dry.
“STOP!” he yelled. “Stop talking! I need to get you to the ship… I need to get you to medical.” His voice trembled, just like his body was.
“Its okay. I know I’m dying” Rae felt calm. She wasn’t trembling. She felt at peace. She had been ready for this day for a long time. You had to be in her line of work.
“You can’t die! No, Rae! No!” At that Markar lifted her. The sudden movement brought the pain back and Rae cried out. The sound was quieter than she expected. Her voice seemed to be muted. Her head lolled back, unsupported. She didn’t have the strength to lift it, let alone hold on as Markar ran.
“You promised to stay with me.” he stated.
He sounded so alone, so lost. Rae wanted to apologize. It was all her fault. She was the one who insisted on coming to the God-forsaken planet! But she was just
so tired
. She couldn’t find the energy to speak.
Rae closed her eyes and instantly fell asleep.
Awakened
Rae opened her eyes to find Markar glaring at her.
“What?” She asked defensively. Her voice cracked from disuse. Rae stretched her jaw, the muscles stiff and sore. She blinked, glancing upwards at the bright lights from the ship. They seemed too bright to her. Her eyes jerked back up to the ceiling.
She was in the ship!
She wasn’t dead!
Rae turned and smiled at a still glaring Markar. His mouth began to twitch at one corned as if he wanted to smile as well, but was resisting.
“I’m alive!” she yelled.
“Yes… barely. I didn’t realize how hard it would be to keep a human alive. You aren’t very resilient.” Markar sneered down at her in apparent disgust.
“Oh, I think I’m pretty resilient to survive all that! How the hell did you keep me alive? I should be dead!” Rae asked gleefully.
Markar’s sneer only seemed to grow with her every word. “It wasn’t easy. I had to put you in the Regeneration Tank for a damn week! Your leg was practically severed.”
Rae’s jaw dropped at his explanation. No wonder her body was so sore. Her hands fluttered over her leg defensively, vainly searching for the wound. Gone was the gaping hole left by the dragon’s fangs. The skin was now flawless, no scar in sight. She was heeled.
“Amazing…” Rae whispered in awe.
“Lucky.” Markar corrected her. “You were too close to death.”
Rae winced at his words, the pain and fear coming back. Sadness washed over her. She remembered every moment, every feeling. The terror of the dragon, the sensation of his teeth piercing her skin, but before all these things she remembered Markar’s pain. Her eyes traveled slowly over him, wishing she could take it all away.
“You almost left me. You promised to never leave me.” Markar stated in a deceptively flat voice, but Rae knew the hurt that lurked behind it. She remembered everything.
“Oh. That promise.” she said in a quiet voice. Her hands fidgeted with the sheet draped over her.
Markar’s features contorted with rage and pain with her words. “
That promise?
You would break your word to me?
You are mine!
” Markar growled possessively, his voice low and all the more anguished.
Rae looked at him in confusion, water collecting on her lashes. She never cried. Why was she crying? There was no way she could stay. “It’s not like we are married or anything.” she mumbled, her eyes locked on the sheet clutched in her lap.
“What is married?” asked Markar, his head tilting to the side in curiosity.
Rae always forgot how little Markar knew. She always forgot he wasn’t human. “It’s when a man and a women decide to stay together for the rest of their lives.” she finally answered, looking up to see his reaction.
“Then we are married.” Markar said decisively. He frowned down at her, daring her to disagree.
Rae’s heart jolted at his words. She had never expected anything like that in her entire life. Aliens, strange planets, and dragons she could imagine, but a man asking, no…
demanding
that she marry him… well, never. And her reaction was strange too… it wasn’t disgust, it wasn’t fear… it was elation.
“Markar! You can’t just decide to marry someone like that! It’s a big decision that takes a lot of planning, and you have to ask the other person for fucks sake!” Rae yelled. Just because she was strangely happy didn’t mean she also couldn’t be mad that he was trying to bully her into marriage.
“It is decided!” he bellowed in his deep voice before stalking off.
Rae yelled out in frustration, throwing her hands into the air for emphasis. Small luminescent tubes, like IV’s, were still connected to her veins, making it impossible for her to chase after Markar, but the man returned only moments later, still looking enraged. He threw a flat clear pad down onto Rae’s lap, startling her.
“What’s this?” she asked as she picked it up, analyzing the strange surface. It was clear, but with a slight colored tint when reflected in the light. Markar grabbed her right hand and forced it down onto the object, flattening her palm over the cool surface. His own right hand pressed down over hers, holding her in place. His face hovered inches from hers, his eyes piercing yellow, daring her to move.
Words began to pour out of his mouth. They were in the Morian language, but Rae’s mind had trouble interpreting them. A word here, a phrase there, so the meaning was jumbled, the true translation unclear. A jolt of electricity went through her palm. Rae tried to jerk her hand away from the startling sensation, but Markar’s held hers in place over the clear rectangular object, now lighting up with sudden purpose.
“What are you doing!” she exclaimed. The strange electric sensation traveled over her skin, making her hair stand on end.
Markar’s words only continued, his voice rising to drown out hers, a chanting quality to the phrases, a steady rhythm. The currents of electricity seemed to be growing, the air around the two sizzling and cracking. Rae tried to concentrate on what he was saying. The language seemed so hard to understand. So formal, old fashioned. Was it an ancient version of Morian language?
Rae’s eyes widened with sudden understanding. The phrases were ones of loyalty, of love, of sacrifice, and eternity. They were true, and they were powerful. A vow was being made, an unbinding partnership. She looked up to Markar with wonder.
He could see the meaning of the words wash over her, and he smiled as he continued to speak them. The truth of the contract was binding. As he finished the vow, the power trailed off slowly, leaving the electricity floating in the air between them.
“What was that?” Rae asked quietly, afraid to break the spell.
“You are now co-pilot of this ship.”
Rae’s jaw dropped open in shock. “That’s what that was! I thought…” she wasn’t sure what she had thought. Her little fairy tale wedding in space was shattered, and Rae felt like a fool for believing that’s what was happening. “I guess this ship’s my engagement ring, then, huh?” she teased, her voice sad.
His face was blank, only slightly confused. “What is an engagement right?”
“Nevermind.” Rae mumbled in response.
“…Well, now you have equal control over the ship. The next time your life is threatened, you can transport yourself to safety instead of having to wait for me.”
“What do you mean the next time my life is threatened?” Rae threw out, only angry at herself. Markar leaned over her, one hand placed on each side of her, his face hovering over hers. Rae retreated, her head falling back onto the bed. His golden eyes leisurely traveled over her features, and Rae prayed he couldn’t read her. She hoped he wouldn’t find out that she was trying to hide her irrational pain behind anger.
“I only wish to protect you.” he said softly. “I do love you, Rae. Maybe you do not believe one of my species could feel that, but I do.”
Her eyes widened in shock, and in that moment she knew he could see through her and see her vulnerability. Rae had let no man get beyond her defenses before and into her heart. Markar’s lips descended towards hers, a slight pressure, waiting for her answer.
Her body trembling, knowing she was making a life changing decision, Rae hesitantly lifted her head, her lips pressing back against Markar’s. She could feel him smile in triumph against her, and he kissed her passionately in response. His kiss was devouring, all consuming, and Rae began to respond to the need she sensed in him. There was need, there was love, but the drugging effect she now associated with Markar’s kiss was strangely dulled.
It felt so normal, so
right
without that strange chemical reaction that Rae couldn’t help but smile, unintentionally ending their kiss. Markar pulled back, one hand moving to brush his fingers through her hair, relishing the feel of the soft strands as they sifted through his palm.
“Will you stay with me, Rae?” he asked.
Rae desperately wanted to stay with Markar. The time spent with him had been the best of her life, minus the whole almost dying thing. Her need for adventure would finally be fulfilled, as would her need for love and loyalty. She swallowed nervously. She wanted this too much.
“Will they allow it?” she asked uncertainly.
Markar seemed to know the hidden depths behind her question. She didn’t mean any one entity, she meant everyone: her government, his species, and any other damned creature in the entire universe that might try to prevent them from being together.
“They will never know.” he whispered in answer, his eyes smiling with mischief.
“What do you mean?” Rae asked in confusion. It was too good to be true.
“I’ve disconnected all communications with my people. No one will ever find us. Space is an awfully large area to search in.” Markar grinned, the mischief still shining bright in his eyes. “…I should know. I have only traveled through it my entire life.”
Rae smirked back in response. She could now have Markar all to herself without any worries! A lifetime in space, exploring the unknown, seeing the unseen, it sounded like heaven!
Suddenly, Rae’s face paled, her eyes widened with knowledge. She had three months. Three months until her birth control ended. How the hell was she going to deal with that whole issue while traveling through space with a man whose species had no idea what a damned ovary was. Rae began to nervously bite her nails.
Markar stared down at her sudden change of mood in confusion.
He had no idea what he was getting into.
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