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  My stomach was churning with embarrassment, but under it was that tiny thread of lust. I didn’t want to be attracted to either Galan or Quill but, God help me, I was. What if what Galan was saying was true? What if being with him didn’t hurt? Maybe his dick was smaller. It might be worth finding out. He was handsome and seemed kind, and he was attracted to me.

  Quill’s attracted to you too.

  That was true. I’d say one thing for the Draax – they did wonders for a girl’s self-esteem.

  You want Quill.

  No, dammit. I didn’t want anyone. I wanted to be left alone. I’d tried sex, it wasn’t for me. No big deal.

  Galan was still waiting patiently for my reply. I smiled weakly at him. “Um, that’s really nice of you to offer, but no thank you. I don’t want to stay on Draax. I have family back on earth and I miss them already.”

  Galan nodded. “I understand, but I would be willing to let you visit them from time to time. Please consider my offer. Draax is more beautiful than earth, I assure you, and Draax males are very skilled at fucking.”

  I snorted, I couldn’t help it, and he said earnestly, “We are, Sabrina. What happened with my king was an unfortunate mistake. I know he feels terrible for hurting you and wishes he could change what happened that night. Most women are very eager to fuck the king. He is very good at making females come.”

  He paused and then said with a small grin, “Not as good as me, of course, but good enough.”

  I laughed and drank the rest of my gallberry juice. “Of course. And how exactly do you know that he’s good at it, anyway?”

  “We have been best friends since we were very young,” Galan said.

  “Okay,” I said. “What does that have to do with... oh! You and the king like to tag team a girl. I get it now.”

  My cheeks were flaming red and Galan leaned forward and studied me. “Is being with two Draax something you want, Sabrina?”

  Yes! Oh God, yes!

  Shut up, I ordered my inner voice.

  “Is it?” Galan’s voice had lowered, and I shivered when he reached out and caught my hand. He stroked my palm with the tips of his rough fingers.

  “I already slept with Quill,” I whispered. “It – it hurts too much.”

  He squeezed my fingers. “He did not mean to hurt you.”

  “I know,” I said.

  “If you are interested in two Draax, I can find another to help me please you.”

  I stared into his eyes, as that thread of lust grew stronger. “I don’t think – who?”

  He smiled, and I blushed again. “When we were boys, there were three. Quill, Galan and Krey. The King’s son, the farmer’s boy and the orphan. Krey is off planet, but when the storm ends,” his fingers brushed the palm of my hand again, “he will return.”

  “Have you and Krey, uh....”

  “Pleasured a woman together?” Galan said.

  I nodded, my cheeks burning, and Galan leaned a little closer. “Yes, little human. In the past, we have pleased a woman together.”

  He lifted my hand to his mouth and pressed a kiss in the center of my palm. I shivered all over as my nipples tightened and moisture dampened my panties.

  “I will show you pleasure now and when the storm ends and Krey returns, we will both show you pleasure.”

  “I – I’ll be gone from here when the storm ends,” I whispered.

  He kissed my palm again. “Your employer will give you days here and there to do what you want.”

  Despite my earlier pledge that I was never having sex again, my body was blissfully ignoring it. It was practically screaming at me to take Galan up on his offer. I bit my bottom lip. As stupid as this was, considering that I had vowed never to let him near me again, my real reason for my hesitation was Quill. He had deliberately told me not to let Galan fuck me. He wouldn’t like it if I slept with Galan and Krey - even if they were his best friends.

  “I appreciate the offer, but I’m really not interested in mating with anyone,” I said.

  He gave me a disappointed look but let go of my hand. “All right. I will leave you for the evening. Good night, Sabrina.”

  “Will you ask Teo about going for a walk tomorrow?” I asked.

  “Of course,” he said. “Sleep well, Sabrina.”

  * * *

  Quillan

  I grunted impatiently and swung my sword in wide arcs as I waited for Galan to show up to spar. Yesterday after informing the little human that she couldn’t leave her quarters, I’d spent the rest of the day with Roden, our head gardener for the west, going over his plans for the new crops we would plant during the warm season. Normally I enjoyed this sort of thing. I’d spent many hours as a child in the palace garden with my mother, planting and weeding and harvesting, but I seemed to have no patience at all for anything. I tried to hide my irritation but by dinner, I retreated to my own personal quarters and refused to see even Teo.

  I’d gone to bed late and slept terribly. I couldn’t stop thinking about the human female and how I’d hurt her. Her scream still echoed in my head no matter how hard I tried to block it out. I deserved to hear it, I thought angrily. I had hurt her and there was nothing I could do about it and it was driving me crazy. If she would let me near her, let me show her that I could be gentle, then perhaps I could find a measure of peace.

  It was almost mid morning and Galan still hadn’t appeared. Scowling, I left the sparring room and headed toward Galan’s quarters. I turned left and stalked down the hallway. I would take a short cut through the garden, I decided before taking another left and entering the garden. I could smell the sweet scent of the gallberry plant as well as the mixture of scents of the dozens and dozens of other plants that grew in the garden.

  The scent eased my irritation a little and I slowed down as I walked along the stone walkway between the plants. The palace garden was beautiful, even in the cold months. I glanced up at the ceiling. In the warm months, the glass ceiling was opened to allow the fresh air and sunshine in. Now, the ceiling was closed tight, and the thick glass was already covered in a heavy layer of snow. But Roden had turned on the artificial sunlight and with the light, the sound of the birds who made the garden their home in the winter and the abundance of plants, being in the garden was like experiencing the warm months of our planet. When it was cold but not storming, we would open the garden to the public for them to sit and enjoy the warmth. It was a tradition my father had started, and one that both my brother and I continued.

  “Is that a rose bush?”

  I stopped, my entire body stiffening at the sound of her soft voice. What was she doing in the garden? When Galan’s voice murmured in reply, my shock was replaced with anger, and I stomped down the pathway and turned right.

  Sabrina was standing at the end of the path. Just ahead of her around the corner was the waterfall, and she cocked her head and spoke loudly to be heard over the sound of the water. “Did you take the rose bushes from earth or do they grow on your planet too?”

  “They grow on our planet as -”

  “Galan!”

  Galan turned at my angry shout, the smile on his face fading when I stormed up to them.

  “My King? What is wrong?”

  “We were supposed to be sparring this morning and you disobeyed my orders!”

  “Forgive me, I promised Sabrina I would show her the garden and lost track of time,” he said. “Wait, what orders did I disobey?”

  “The human was to stay in her quarters,” I snarled.

  “The little human asked if I would be her ch-chaperone,” he stumbled a little over the unfamiliar word, “so I asked Teo if I could take her for a walk today, and he said yes.”

  My jaw dropped, and I stared at Sabrina. To my surprise she didn’t look ashamed of her behaviour. She grinned at me rather smugly.

  “You would deliberately mislead both Teo and Galan?” I said.

  “Damn right I would.” She lifted her chin and gave me a defiant look. “It’s not right for
you to keep me a prisoner.”

  “It is for your own safety,” I said through gritted teeth.

  “No, it’s because you think I won’t be able to keep my hands off one of your men, even though I could go to prison for breaking my trade agreement, and even though I told you I wasn’t interested in mating with anyone.”

  She planted her hands on her full hips and glared at me. “You know you really need to work on your listening skills. You’d think as king, you’d be better at hearing what people say.”

  Galan’s mouth dropped open and he stared in shock at the little female before staring at me. I barely noticed. I was too busy glaring at the human.

  “I’m not a good listener?” I said angrily. “Who is wandering the garden after being told specifically to stay in her quarters?”

  “That’s not because I’m not a good listener,” she shouted. Her face was bright red and she made an angry little noise when my gaze dropped to her heaving chest. “Hey! Eyes up here!”

  My gaze snapped to her face and she said, “I’m a perfectly fine listener. I just chose not to follow your ridiculous request to stay in my apartment.”

  “It was not a request. It was a command and as your king, you will do what I say.”

  “You are not my king.”

  “Oh Krono,” Galan said in a worried voice.

  I glared at her. “You live in my province and you are under my roof. I am your king and you will do as I say, or I will…”

  “You’ll what?”

  “I will…”

  She stared wild-eyed at me. Krono help me, the only thing I could think to do to her was take her back to my private quarters and bury my face between those smooth thighs. She was furious with me, but I bet once I started licking her little pussy that anger would turn to lust in a heartbeat.

  “You’ll what?” She repeated.

  When I didn’t reply, she said, “You know, you need to learn to control your temper. I’ve met your future mate, and she’s sweet and very nervous. You’ll scare the hell out of her when you have these temper tantrums.”

  “I am not having a temper tantrum!” I shouted even though I had no idea what a temper tantrum was.

  “Of course you’re not,” she said sarcastically.

  “For the sake of Krono!” I took four deep breaths and turned to Galan. “Return her to her apartment and meet me in the sparring room.”

  “Yes, my King.” He bowed, and I stared expectantly at Sabrina.

  Instead of curtseying, she stuck her tiny, delicate and oh so sweet-tasting tongue out at me.

  I threw my hands up and stomped away.

  * * *

  When Galan returned to the sparring room ten minutes later, I was standing in the middle of it holding tightly to my sword. I indicated for him to raise his sword and he shook his head.

  “No, my King.”

  “Do as I command,” I snapped.

  He shook his head again. “I will not. We should not spar when you are so angry with me.”

  I opened my mouth to say I wasn’t angry, and then shut it with a snap. I was angry with him. I shouldn’t have been, Sabrina had tricked him, but I hated that not only was she enjoying his company, but that he was attracted to her.

  I lowered my sword and said, “You are attracted to her.”

  “I am,” Galan said. “But she does not share my enthusiasm.”

  Relief flooded through me and I immediately felt guilty. The little human did not belong to me and Galan was my best friend. He deserved to be happy and if the human made him happy, I should step aside and allow him to fuck her.

  So why couldn’t I say that to him?

  I stared at Galan and he laughed. “My King, you are beginning to wear your emotions on your face much like the humans.”

  “I am not.”

  “You are,” Galan replied. “Forgive me, Quill. If I had known you still wanted her, I would never have approached her about becoming my mate.”

  “You asked her to be your mate?” I stared at him in surprise.

  He nodded. “Well, I told her she could finish her employment as a nanny first, and then asked if she would consider being my mate. I even offered to let her try both Krey and me together when he returns home.”

  “What did she say?” My gut was doing that weird burning thing again.

  “About being my mate? Or allowing Krey and me to pleasure her together?”

  “Both!”

  “She said no to both. She is not interested in sleeping with a Draax male ever again.”

  There was no tone of accusation in his voice, but my shoulders slumped, and the end of my tail hit the floor with a loud thump. “I did not mean to hurt her, Galan.”

  “I know, my King,” Galan said.

  “I want to fix it, want to show her that fucking can be pleasurable, but she refuses and I do not know how to change her mind. She is so stubborn.” Now my tail flicked rapidly.

  Galan laughed. “She does seem to be a bit temperamental. Truthfully, I am a little glad that she turned down my offer. I do not think I would enjoy such a volatile mate.”

  I opened my mouth to agree and instead said, “She is just very strong-willed.”

  “That she is and, surprisingly, you seem to enjoy it,” Galan said.

  “I thought I would want a more docile mate, but I do not mind Sabrina’s wildness,” I said grudgingly. I didn’t want to admit to Galan that her fiery spirit and refusal to mindlessly follow my orders made me as hard as a rock.

  “She is right in that it is not fair to keep her locked in her quarters,” Galan said. “A moon is a long time to be by herself.”

  “I know,” I said. “But I think it is best to keep her away from the other males.”

  “Because you want her for yourself?”

  “No, because I… because I do not want to cause tension among the others.”

  “If you make it clear that she is yours, there will be no tension,” Galan said.

  “She is not mine, remember?” Saying the words put me on edge.

  “Not permanently. But you can claim her for the moon she is here. Just because you do not make her your mate, does not mean that you cannot claim her at all.”

  Galan was right. If the men thought that Sabrina was mine, they wouldn’t go near her. Of course, it would only work if she let me touch her and that wasn’t…

  My eyes widened as I was hit with a sudden thought. Krono, would it work? It might. She was desperate to be out of her quarters and this was a way to give her what she wanted and give me what I wanted too. I could show her that fucking was pleasurable and perhaps the sound of her scream would finally stop ringing in my head.

  “Quill? What is it?”

  “You are right, Galan,” I said. “She cannot stay locked up in her quarters for the entire storm. I will go to her now and offer her a deal that will give us what we both want.”

  I left the sparring room before he could reply. I was nearly vibrating with excitement and I hurried to Sabrina’s quarters, barely noticing the people who stopped to bow as I passed them. I knocked but didn’t wait for her answer, just opened the door and walked in. Sabrina was sitting on the couch and she jumped up and gave me an exaggerated and exceedingly clumsy curtsey before dropping back onto the couch.

  “My King,” she said.

  I ignored her sarcastic tone, even though it made my cock twitch against my pants, and joined her in the living room.

  “What can I do for you, my King?” She said in a sweetly fake voice.

  I folded my hands behind my back and said, “You are right, Sabrina. I should not keep you a prisoner in your quarters.”

  Her mouth dropped open and she quickly closed it when I grinned at her. “I -yes, of course I’m right.”

  “I will allow you to leave your quarters every day, with me as a chaperone of course. In fact, I will take you back to the garden this evening after dinner.”

  She stared at me with narrowed eyes. “What’s the catch?”


  I grinned. My little human was a clever one. “I will allow you to explore the garden tonight in exchange for kissing me.”

  “Wh-what?”

  “If you would like to explore the gardens, you will be required to kiss me.”

  “Are you crazy? Is that it? You’re crazy, right?” She sputtered.

  I said nothing, just kept my hands folded behind my back and waited. Outwardly I looked calm and patient, but my stomach was a jumbled ball of nerves. If she did not agree to my deal, I would never be able to fix what I’d done to her.

  The minutes ticked by as I fought to keep my tail still. I had a feeling that the little human had already figured out our tails were an excellent way to gauge our emotions. Indeed, her gaze kept flickering to where my tail rested against the floor.

  “Just one kiss?” She finally said.

  “No. Kissing,” I replied.

  “For how long?”

  “An hour.”

  “Fifteen minutes.”

  “Forty-five minutes,” I said, trying not to laugh.

  “Twenty.”

  “Forty.”

  Twenty-five,” she said.

  “Thirty.”

  “Fine. Half an hour of kissing and you’ll let me explore the gardens.”

  “For half an hour,” I said.

  “What? That’s not long enough.”

  I shrugged. “If you kiss me for an hour, I’ll allow you to explore the garden for an hour.”

  “Bastard,” she muttered.

  I grinned, the earth’s cuss words were always amusing to me.

  “Just kissing though. Right?” Her boldness had been replaced by apprehension.

  “Yes,” I said soothingly. “Only kissing, little human. Nothing more.”

  She took a deep breath. “Okay. Half an hour of kissing for half an hour in the garden.”

  “We have a deal then?” I held out my hand in the traditional earth custom of agreement.

  She studied my hand before giving it a quick shake. “Yes. We have a deal.”

  Chapter Six

  Sabrina