He frowned. “We will not strip you bare to make use of your body. That must be a concern of yours since you are a woman with so many men.” He released her and took a step back.

Shit! “That concept never crossed my mind.”

It hadn’t. She was still trying to wrap her head around them being aliens and hoping they weren’t going to kill her. Her attention dropped to the front of his pants and then she stared into his eyes again. Was that even possible? They looked humanoid, amazingly so, even though there were obvious differences in their features. They were bigger than average men too, all of them tall and thickly muscled.

“When it does, have no fear. I will not allow anyone to harm you.” His nostrils flared as he inhaled and a soft growl came from his throat that the box either didn’t pick up or couldn’t translate. “You are very tempting, but right now our mission is to find our friend.”

Chapter Three

Coto had sniffed at her. Lynn hesitated and sniffed back at him. Maybe it’s a cultural thing with these aliens. She inhaled the scent of something musky and pleasant. He responded by making another soft growl. He stepped close again.

The look in his eyes made her feel a little weak in the knees. She didn’t need a box to translate lust. He was foreign to her but still masculine and attractive. If he were human, she’d probably be panting after a guy built like him. And she loved the long hair. The fact that he was so tall was a turn-on too, since most of the men she knew were short.

She sure didn’t get prime stud muffins in Green Bend. She got idiots like Jimmy Morgan and his drug buddies or lazy, out-of-shape older guys like Mayor Morgan to choose from for potential dating candidates. Any guys half decent had been snatched up in high school and remained taken by other women.

He reached out and brushed a finger along her chin, then leaned in. He inhaled, making a low noise that wasn’t quite a growl but more of a rumble.

“What are you doing?” Her voice was barely a whisper.

“You are checking my scent.”

“You sniffed at me and I did it back.”

He let his hand drop away. “You are not initiating sexual contact with me?”

“Whoa, boy.” She was stunned. “Is that what…ah…leprechauns do to hit on each other? Is sniffing foreplay?”

Coto scowled. “I would never strike you. You threw your purse at me and I did not defend myself against your attack.”

The box translated the words in a dull, emotionless tone but Coto sounded furious and his expression reflected that. She’d insulted him or just pissed him off by what she’d said.

“‘Hit on’ doesn’t mean that. Hit on means flirting or initiating sex. It’s a saying.”

His features relaxed. “Our translator doesn’t know that. We need to speak clearly without your sayings so there are no miscommunications.”

“Our computer was damaged.” Holion shifted his stance, catching her attention. “We have a smaller translator if you’d allow us to put it inside your ear so we don’t have to use this portable unit from our shi—stuff. It is outdated technology.” An annoyed expression crossed his features. “With our computer not working, we had to pull these units out to communicate if we ran into your people.”

Her gaze shifted to Coto. He nodded. “It is safe.”

“You can give me an earpiece thingy.” She shrugged. It beat them holding a box out toward her while they spoke. She was obviously going to spend at least a little time with them until she could escape or they let her go. She hadn’t missed Holion’s slip. Aliens came with ships. She was pretty certain that’s what he’d almost said. “I guess that would be okay.”

The redhead, Gar, lifted the bag he held, pushed a hand inside, and then nodded to Coto before tossing a small ring-sized box at him. Coto’s reflexes were amazing for a guy with injuries as he caught it and removed a tiny object from inside.

“Turn and tilt your head. Please pull your hair out of the way.”

Lynn hesitated but then did as he asked. She shoved her blonde hair back and turned her head, warily watching Coto as he stepped forward, his gaze turning to her exposed ear. His thumb brushed the bottom of her earlobe as he pressed what felt like a cold bead into her ear canal.

She gasped, her hand shooting up to cover it a second later. Whatever it was, it moved, seeming to tunnel inward toward her brain. Pain hit next and almost took her to her knees. She would have collapsed if Coto hadn’t lunged, wrapping both his arms around her waist to keep her upright. A snarl tore from his parted lips.

“This hurts her. Why?”

The discomfort was bad and tears filled her eyes. She whimpered as needle-sharp agony attacked her eardrum. She opened her mouth but the pain was too bad for her to even cry out.

“No one told me this would harm her.” Coto’s voice was deep and no longer mechanical. “Make it stop now, Gar. Help her!”

“It is just seconds of pain. It will pass. The implant is taking hold and it is integrating into her system.”

Coto adjusted his hold on her and bent. He scooped her into his arms, cradling her against his chest. He walked over to a fallen tree and sat with her on his lap.

The sharp pain inside her ear stopped as suddenly as it had started.

“If you allow her to be harmed again, I will hurt you, Gar,” Coto warned.

She stared up at him as he lowered his chin. He really looked furious as they eyed each other. “It’s better.”

“I am sorry it hurt. I never would have allowed it if I had known it would harm you in any way.”

His mouth moved and there were actual words. The translator not only worked but it was translating emotion, and gave the alien a unique voice. There was no time delay anymore either. The lip movement to sound was a little off, assuring her he was probably still growling, but she could understand him as if he were actually speaking English.

“Are you well now?” Coto shifted his hold on her, still cradling her in his arms, but freeing one hand to reach up and gently cup her face. He lowered his head so they were a breath from being mouth to mouth, their eyes so close she could see the silver specks with amazing clarity even in the blue light from the ground. “Nothing will harm you again—or I will harm it much worse.”

“Your voice. I can hear it.”