Reign Page 8

  When Quill arrived at my quarters just after dinner, I was ready. I had brushed my teeth – that just seemed like common courtesy – but I had scrubbed my face clean of the makeup I was wearing earlier, and I made sure to wear an old pair of jeans and my biggest and thickest sweatshirt. I didn’t want him thinking that I was excited about kissing him because I wasn’t. Not at all. The butterflies in my stomach were because I was excited about returning to the garden. The garden was super cool. The kissing was just something I had to endure to enjoy the garden.

  As Quill looked me up and down, I tried not to blush. I was feeling a little ashamed of my behaviour earlier. I had hollered at royalty and stuck my tongue out at him. Was I five years old? I accused him of having temper tantrums, but I had stuck my tongue out at him and been about five seconds away from stamping my feet like a toddler.

  Just keep it together, I told myself.

  I was surprised when Quill moved to the kitchen table and studied the rows of origami animals perched on it. I joined him and when he picked up one of the cranes, I plucked it from his hand.

  He frowned at me. “I would like that, little human.”

  I just shrugged and his green skin darkened. “You gave Galan one. I saw it.”

  “Galan is my friend.” I swept up the other paper animals before he could take them.

  I waited for him to just order me to give him one. Instead, a look that was almost hurt crossed his face as he stared at the origami. I immediately felt guilty. Why was I acting so childish?

  I held out the crane. “Here.”

  Satisfaction crossed his face and he stared at the crane sitting in the palm of his hand before looking at the other ones I still held.

  “What?”

  “I want that one as well.” He pointed to the rabbit.

  “You already have one.”

  “I want two.” His voice was adorably stubborn.

  I handed over the bunny and he grinned triumphantly at me. “Thank you, little human.” He tucked both into his pocket.

  I placed the other ones on the table as Quill held his hand out to me.

  “No,” I said. “No touching.”

  I expected him to be irritated, but he just smiled. “It is important that the other males know you belong to me, human.”

  “I don’t belong to you,” I said.

  “While you are living here at the palace, you belong to me. They do not need to know that we are not,” he paused, “mating. They only need to…”

  “Believe that we’re having sex.”

  “Yes. It will keep them away from you.”

  “Teo said the males here wouldn’t hurt me.”

  “They will not,” he said reassuringly. “But they will be relentless in trying to convince you to mate with them if they think you are available.”

  “Okay,” I said slowly. “That kind of makes sense.”

  I studied his hand before grasping it. He squeezed it and led me out of my quarters and into the hallway. They were wide enough that we could walk side-by-side. His hand tightened on mine when we met the first male in the hallway. The Draax bowed, then straightened and gave me an intense look that was part curiosity and part longing.

  I twitched when Quill’s tail lashed out and curved around my waist, pulling me closer until my hip brushed his thick thigh. The Draax immediately stared at the floor and murmured, “Good evening, my King.”

  “Good evening, Bitta,” Quill said. To my surprise he introduced me. “This is Sabrina.”

  “Hi, Bitta. It’s nice to meet you.” I held out my free hand.

  Bitta reached to shake my hand. Quill made a weird noise that was somewhere between a growl and a cooing noise. Bitta dropped his hand without touching mine and smiled politely.

  “Good evening, Sabrina. It is nice to meet you as well.”

  He bowed again before carrying on down the hallway. I stared at Quill’s tail that was still wrapped around my waist. He released me and said, “Draax males use their tails around the waist of their female to show other males she belongs to him.”

  “Cute.” I rolled my eyes.

  Still holding my hand, he led me toward the garden. It was slow-going. Every male we met in the hallway – and there were many – stopped and bowed to Quill. We went through the same song and dance we did with Bitta with every other male. Quill would introduce me and wrap his tail around my waist. The Draax would get the message and quickly move on. I stopped trying to shake their hands after the fifth one. Quill made that same weird growly noise every time another male even came close to touching me.

  “What’s with the growling?” I finally asked. Despite having been to the garden just this morning, I was still hopelessly lost in the maze of hallways. Quill’s home was impossibly large, and I felt like we had passed at least a hundred doors. Of course, I had a terrible sense of direction. Even if I was given free reign of the palace, I would need a guide just to get back to my own damn apartment.

  “What growling?” He asked.

  “You growl whenever I try and shake someone’s hand.”

  “I do not.”

  “You do.”

  “Do you have to argue with me over everything?” He asked.

  I shrugged. “If you’re clearly wrong, then yes.”

  He laughed. “You believe I am wrong about everything.”

  “Not everything.”

  “Name something you agree with me on,” he challenged.

  “Uh… gallberry juice is very good for me.”

  He laughed again, and a funny little shiver went down my spine. He had a nice laugh. We were finally at the garden and I shook free of his hand and walked at a fast pace down the path. If I only had half an hour, I wanted to see the waterfall.

  I got to the first fork in the stone walkway and stopped. “Um, which way to the waterfall?”

  “Left,” Quill said behind me.

  I turned left, and he called out directions until I turned the corner and came face to face with the waterfall. My jaw dropped as I stared up at it. The wall behind the waterfall was made of smooth stone and water poured from the top to splash down the rock and into a small clear pond below it.

  I grinned widely. Small was a relative term I suppose. I guessed the pond to be about seven feet in diameter and when I peered into it, I couldn’t see the bottom despite how clear the water was.

  “How deep is it?” I asked.

  “In Earth units of measurement, probably about ten feet,” Quill said.

  “Do you swim in it?”

  He shook his head. “No, when we want to swim we use the pool.”

  “You have a pool? In the palace?”

  He nodded, and I gave him an excited look. “Can I use the pool?”

  I loved to swim, it was my favourite thing in the world to do, and I could barely contain my eagerness. Quill studied me for a moment before nodding again.

  “Of course, little human.”

  “Thank you!” I walked around the pond, studying the flowers that grew at the edge of it. Most of them I didn’t recognize but I saw a rose bush, a few black-eyed susans and some peonies.

  “Do you get some of the flowers from earth?” I asked.

  “Yes. Your food is difficult to grow in our soil, but your flowers flourish. The Draax love to garden so the opportunity to bring in new plant life was hard to resist,” Quill said.

  “That’s kind of funny.”

  “Why?”

  “Well, because you’re so big and tough and you like to fight. You know?”

  “Do human males who like to fight not like to garden?” Quill asked.

  “Not usually,” I said.

  “Interesting. The Draax are taught at a young age to respect the plants that provide us with so much. Nourishment, beauty, and healing.”

  The gallberry plant,” I said. Just thinking about the juice made my mouth water. I don’t know if he saw the look on my face or it was just coincidence, but Quill pulled a flask from the pocket of his pants.


  “Yes. The gallberry plant is very important to us.” He unscrewed the flask and held it out to me.

  I could smell the scent of gallberries and I licked my lips. “Uh, I’d better not.”

  “Why not?” He scowled at me.

  “Well, because I don’t want to, uh, drink all of your supply of gallberry juice when there isn’t anything wrong with me, and I think it’s kind of addictive,” I said. “I don’t want to get methed out on gallberry juice.”

  “Methed out?”

  “Never mind,” I said.

  He gave the flask an impatient little shake. “We have more than enough gallberry juice and it is no more addictive than that dark bitter liquid you humans seem to find so appealing.”

  “Are you sure?” I said. “Because I love coffee but I already like this way more. I, uh, I almost can’t stop thinking about it sometimes.”

  “It is because your body is craving its natural healing abilities.”

  “I’m not sick,” I said.

  “You may think you are not but obviously your body is not fully well,” Quill replied. “If you drink the juice and then begin to crave it the way you describe, it usually means you are ill.”

  “Really?”

  He nodded, and I took the flask from him and drank two large swallows and handed it back. He took his own drink before making it disappear back into his pocket.

  “Thank you.”

  “You’re welcome.”

  He sat down on a wide wooden bench that was next to the pond and watched silently as I studied more of the plants before kneeling and trailing my hand through the water. It was ice cold and I shivered before drying my hand on my jeans. I was just studying the large pink plant that grew near the base of the waterfall when Quill said, “It has been half an hour, human.”

  The butterflies immediately flickered to life in my stomach and I gave Quill a hesitant look. He held his hand out. “Come, Sabrina.”

  I didn’t want to. Not because I was afraid, but because just the idea of kissing Quill was making me feel too warm and - oh dear God – was my crotch starting to dampen?

  I took a quick glance at the front of my jeans, half-expecting to see a damp spot spreading across my crotch. There was nothing, but hell if my panties weren’t starting to feel wet. What was wrong with me?

  “Sabrina,” Quill prompted gently.

  I moved toward him. I had made a deal with him and I wasn’t going to back out. It was just kissing. Kissing was fine. Despite the way my pussy was starting to throb, I wouldn’t be tempted by just kissing to let Quill go any further.

  I was done with sex. I didn’t need it and didn’t want it. I knew that without a doubt. It was just taking my body a little longer to get with the program and really, I couldn’t blame it. Up until the actual intercourse, everything Quill did to me was extremely pleasant.

  Pleasant? My inner voice snorted. It was fucking hot and you know it, girl. Stop thinking so much and just give Quill the chance to fix what happened.

  Nope, no way, never gonna happen. I was standing next to Quill now and I gave him a hesitant look when he continued to sit.

  “Um, are you going to stand or…”

  He shook his head and patted his lap. “Sit on my lap, Sabrina.”

  “You said just kissing.” I was immediately alarmed.

  “And I will keep my word.” He rested his big hands on the bench. “Sit down, little human.”

  I bit my bottom lip before perching sideways on his thick thighs. My butt was pressing against his dick, but there was no hardness poking into me and I relaxed slightly. I was eye level with Quill and I had a sudden moment of gratitude toward the alien. Sitting on his lap and being on top at least gave me the illusion of being in control, especially with his hands still resting on the bench. It made me feel more confident and less worried that it would be more than just kissing.

  “Are you ready, human?” He asked.

  I nodded, and he smiled. “Close your eyes.”

  I closed my eyes and tried not to jump when he brushed his mouth against mine. His lips were warm and firm and, God, he smelled so good. I returned his kisses tentatively at first, but it didn’t take long before I was parting my lips. He ignored my silent invitation and continued to brush his lips across mine. I leaned forward, pressing my upper body against his and squeezing his arms with my hands. He sucked on my bottom lip and then my top lip and I licked across the seam of his lips. He didn’t open his mouth and I moaned in frustration before pulling back.

  “Please, Quill.”

  “What is it that you want, little human?”

  “I want real kisses.”

  He smiled, and I blushed, but his amusement didn’t stop me from licking at his lips again. This time he opened his mouth and I pushed my tongue into his mouth. He sucked hard on it and my hips arched uselessly. As he finally slipped his tongue into my mouth and explored it with gentle licks, I tugged at his arms. His hands were still resting on the bench and it was irritating me. He was supposed to touch me when he kissed me. That’s what normal couples did.

  I moaned happily when he put one big hand on my hip and the other cupped the back of my skull. He angled his mouth over mine, kissing me more deeply as I willingly surrendered. I felt drugged from his kisses – shit, this was better than gallberry juice – and I relaxed against him like a kitten as he kissed me repeatedly. His hand at my hip wasn’t moving, but I liked the heat of his hand that I could feel even through the denim of my jeans. I touched his broad chest with the tips of my fingers, tracing the soft fabric of his shirt.

  Did he have hair on his chest? Despite having seen him naked, I honestly couldn’t remember. Even thinking about that day in my apartment and how it ended in pain should have cooled my lust. Oddly it didn’t. He had touched me that day – he had cupped my breasts and rubbed my nipples and it had felt so good. My nipples were tightening against my bra just thinking about it. All of my skin felt too hot and tight, and I was regretting wearing such a thick sweatshirt.

  At the time, I’d thought it was a good idea to try and hide my breasts, but now I realized how stupid that was. If I was wearing a tighter shirt, Quill might be tempted to at least touch them through my shirt. He sucked at my tongue again and I arched my back, hoping he would take the hint. His hands didn’t move, and I arched again.

  Dammit, why wouldn’t he touch me? He wanted me – I could feel his hard cock under my ass so why wouldn’t he…

  He had an erection.

  I froze against him and he immediately pulled back. “What is wrong, Sabrina?”

  “N-nothing.”

  “I will not hurt you.”

  “I know.”

  I could feel inappropriate laughter bubbling up in my chest. He thought I was afraid when I was trying desperately not to grind my ass against his dick.

  He kissed me again, back to those light, not nearly enough, brushes of his mouth against mine. I dug my fingers into his chest in frustration.

  “More,” I muttered against his mouth.

  He slipped his tongue into my mouth and I couldn’t help it, I rubbed my ass against his cock. He groaned, his pelvis arching up just the tiniest bit in response. It was the first indication of need from him since we’d started kissing, and it sent wetness gushing to my core. I ground my ass against him again. This time he arched enough that I would have fallen from his lap if it wasn’t for his big hand on my hip.

  His kisses abruptly turned hard and demanding, the hand on my hip digging into my soft flesh as he forced my mouth wide and took what was his. I gasped with pleasure, my entire body shuddering against his as hot need coiled in my belly.

  With a harsh groan, he pulled away from me and nearly pushed me off his lap before standing.

  “Don’t stop!” The soft little cry had tumbled from my mouth before I could stop it. I blushed in embarrassment and stared at the ground. My legs were shaking, and I was sweaty and hot, and my heart was racing like a frightened rabbit.

  �
��It grows late,” he said gruffly as I continued to stare at the stone below my feet. “Come, human. I will return you to your quarters.”

  He took my hand and we walked silently back to my quarters. When we were standing outside the door, there was a moment of awkward silence. I cleared my throat and said, “Thank you for taking me to the garden tonight. I enjoyed it very much.”

  “You are welcome, human.”

  Quill’s voice was hoarse, and I couldn’t resist peeking at the front of his pants. Even though we had stopped kissing nearly five minutes ago, the bulge of his erection was still very noticeable against the fabric of his pants. It gave me a weird combination of pride and lust to see the evidence of his need for me.

  “I must go,” Quill said. “I have an early morning.”

  “Okay, right,” I said. “Good night.”

  He paused and then said, “I will take you for a tour of the rest of the palace tomorrow evening.”

  “In exchange for more kissing?” Jesus, did I have to sound so eager?

  He stared blankly at me before nodding. “Yes. In exchange for kissing.”

  “Okay, sure. Great.” Oh God, I sounded like a sex maniac. “I mean, yeah, I guess if that’s what I need to do to get out of my damn apartment. But just kissing and nothing else…right?”

  “Just kissing,” he agreed.

  Did he have to agree so quickly to just kissing? I expected him to negotiate a better deal. A tour of the entire palace was something I really wanted so, hell, I would have agreed to let him feel me up a little for it. It was like he didn’t even want to touch my boobs anymore. Which was perfectly fine with me, so why was I feeling such disappointment?

  “Good night, Sabrina.” Quill opened my door and practically pushed me inside.

  “Good night, Quill. Thank you ag -”

  The door shut in my face and I slumped against it before rubbing my hand across my forehead. What was happening to me?

  * * *

  Quillan

  I hurried into my private quarters. My cock was throbbing, and the pressure of my pants had turned painful. I slammed the door shut and tore at the buttons on my pants, releasing my cock. Groaning, I gripped it and rubbed briskly. My palm slid across the shaft as I closed my eyes and pictured Sabrina’s full lips. She’d tasted so sweet with just a hint of mint. The soft little sounds she made when I kissed her, the fullness of her hip under my hand and Krono – the way she rubbed her ass against my dick. Not fucking her in that moment was an act of sheer willpower.