“How do you feel?”

He hesitated. “Disappointed.”

It was a verbal slap, and it hurt. “I knew you’d regret this.”

“No.” He scowled. “Not about what we did, but that I couldn’t hold back. I’ll do better next time.”

Next time. He wanted to see her again. Dana breathed easier, grateful he wasn’t sorry that he’d talked her into having sex with him. She didn’t regret it either, but admitted to herself that she was confused over how she felt about it.

“It’s been a long time since I’ve shared sex. I grew too excited. I’ll do better in a few minutes.”

“A few minutes?”

“I have to recover. My balls ache a little, but it will stop fast.”

She was confused. “You hurt yourself?”

“I came so hard it hurt. I think it’s from spasms. My balls feel twitchy and ache a bit, but it’s lessening.”

“Is that a Species thing?”

“Possibly. I’m not certain. I’ll have to ask other males. It doesn’t happen when I masturbate, but you excite me much more than when I’m tending to my own needs.”

His candor stunned her, but she appreciated it. “Do you do that often?”

“Yes. Don’t you?”

His openness about the subject of masturbation helped her to be honest too. “Sometimes. Not when I’m visiting Paul though. I didn’t bring my vibrator. I was too worried about my bags being checked at the airport.”

“I don’t understand.”

“You know.” She winced. “An employee there could search my bag and find it. It would be horrible to know someone might have seen it.”

“Why are you so shy about sex?”

“I don’t know. I just am.”

“I’ll teach you not to be. Am I better than your sex toy?”

She blushed, the memory of his mouth on her was something she’d never forget. “Yes.”

“How often do you use it?”

She hesitated, not sure how to answer that, or if she even should.

“I need to know so I can meet your needs. I enjoy masturbating at least three to four times a day. You must have been tense if you didn’t bring your vibrator to Homeland. I grow testy if I don’t find sexual release. Are you the same way? Do you do it every few hours or just in bed before sleep and when you wake?”

He wasn’t going to let it drop. “It helps me sleep.”

He smiled. “That wasn’t difficult, was it? I’ll make certain I lick you every night. You should allow me to do it in the morning too so you start your day off feeling relaxed.”

It was becoming a habit that his words surprised her. “Every night?”

“Every night. Every morning.” His cock hardened inside her. “I’m recovered.”

“I feel.”

He withdrew a little from her, and then drove back in. “This time I won’t come until you do. I’m more prepared for how extraordinary you feel.”

Dana moaned, clutching at his shoulders. Mourn had pegged it. Extraordinary was a great way to describe how it felt when he moved inside her. He lifted his chest off her by straightening up and she had to release him, but she locked her legs around his waist. He hooked one arm under her lower back, holding her in place while he fucked her.

She watched as Mourn lifted his free hand to his mouth and licked the tip of his thumb. He reached down between them and pressed it firmly against her clit. He wiggled it.

“Oh god.”

“You’re very religious.”

She let that go, making a mental note to explain it later. He yanked her ass closer with his arm hooked under her, holding her in place as he fucked her faster. She closed her eyes, bit her lip, and just enjoyed the feel of him inside her while he played with her clit at the same time until she cried out his name, the climax tearing through her.

Mourn didn’t let up on her clit, and she bucked, squeezing his waist with her thighs. He snarled, and she felt it when he came. His motions became almost violent and jerky, and then there was the warmth spreading inside her.

She wanted to ask him about his warm semen, once she caught her breath and could form sentences again. He pulled his thumb off her clit and came down on top of her, pinning her with his body. She wrapped her arms around his neck and he kept his word, not pulling out of her, but instead kept them linked.

“I’m getting better at learning how to please you,” he rasped.

She opened her eyes and was enthralled at the way Mourn looked at her, as if she were someone very special to him. It might have been wishful thinking. She could easily fall in love with him and suspected she had already started to. Realization came next. It was going to tear her apart when he figured out she was just an emotional crutch. He might not regret the sex, because it had been fantastic, but he’d realize he didn’t want to spend the rest of his life with her. She would return home with her heart in tatters.

“What are you thinking?”

She wasn’t going to share her worries. “I’m just enjoying being so close to you.” That was the truth.

“I am too.” He turned his head, glancing around the shed. “We need a home. I don’t want you to have to live in the men’s dorm. It can get loud sometimes when the males play games. I doubt Paul will want to share his home with another male. We’re territorial. It’s his space.” He smiled when he looked at her again. “I’ll request housing in the morning. They will assign us to a house like Paul’s. We can sleep here tonight.”

“We can’t just move in together.”

That wiped his good mood away. “We can. I know you aren’t ready to mate with me. You want time. I understand that you need to learn more about me before you sign the mate papers. The best way to convince you that I’m your male will be sharing quarters.”

New Species don’t date. Paul’s words sounded in her head again. Most men were afraid to commit. Mourn wanted to go full speed into a live-in relationship, to jump in with both feet.

“I’ll hold you while we’re sleeping. We’ll share meals. It will be nice. At least try it.”

It was tough to say no when he looked at her with those gorgeous eyes, and was holding her, their bodies entwined. His husky voice didn’t help matters. She had a hard time resisting. It’s also how he’d gotten her thighs spread open to him in the first place. No man had ever talked to her that way, and it had been a turn-on she couldn’t resist.