Dovis Read online

  He left Cathian’s side to watch the enemy on radar. They were increasing the distance between them. The Raxis shuttles weren’t built for speed and they had sustained some damage from York firing on them. He almost wished they’d boarded The Vorge, giving him a chance to kill every bastard who thought they could hurt his crew.

  His mind kept returning to Mari. The taste of her blood still lingered on his tongue, and he was uncomfortably aware of the state of his dick. It was semi-hard.

  He didn’t know if he should be horrified or worried that he found her sexually appealing. She wasn’t his type. Too fragile, small, and nonaggressive.

  He tapped the screen to his left, pulled up security feeds, and overrode privacy protocols to check on Mari inside her cabin. He could have just viewed her vitals…but he wanted to see her.

  The vid view showed that she lay on her bed sleeping, in the same position he’d left her. Her chest rose and fell as he watched.

  “Breaking rules of privacy? I’m shocked, Dovis.”

  Cathian’s soft whisper made him startle. He’d been unaware that his friend was walking up behind him, too focused on the human.

  “I’m just making sure Mari is staying down. I told her to remain at rest for an hour. Her body needs to heal, but she might feel fine even if she’s not yet. My saliva seems to give off a mild high.”

  Cathian chuckled. “I remember. Raff was actually talkative and nice while he healed. Laughing even. It was almost like he’d drank a lot of booze.”

  Dovis nodded. “She’s tiny and not Tryleskian. I have no idea how she’ll react. It’s why I activated the vid feed into her cabin.”

  “Understood.” Cathian hesitated. “You looked upset. Why?”

  He hesitated. “Something strange happened when I bit her.”

  Cathian crouched next to his seat, bracing his arm along the top of the console. “What?”

  Dovis hesitated.

  “We’re best friends. No secrets or lies are between us. I’ve told you everything about myself. Talk to me.”

  Dovis glanced back, making sure York remained at his station across the bridge. The Parri male had good hearing, but not if they kept their voices low enough. “My fangs throbbed while I bit her, and I felt…” He didn’t want to admit it.

  “Tell me.” Cathian leaned in closer.

  “You know of my childhood. I was abandoned by my parents after my mother birthed me. It’s shameful to be born in skin, like I was. It proved I was flawed, one of the unfortunate ones.”

  “That’s bullshit,” Cathian growled. “Your people are fucked up for that.”

  “Rarely do abandoned infants survive. They starve to death, or succumb to the elements, or are killed by animals. But there was an elder female who cared for me until I was old enough to fend for myself. Her mate had died and they’d never had children. The other villagers shunned her for rescuing me, giving me food and letting me sleep inside her home on a mat. She tried to convince them she treated me like a pet, and I suppose in some ways she did. But she also told me myths about ones like me, and why we were hated.”

  “What kind of myths?”

  “In my culture, it’s against the law to use my ability to heal by saliva and bite. I was four when I first learned I had it. Taznia had fallen, she was very aged, and she’d sliced open her arm badly. She couldn’t get it to stop bleeding and no one in the village would help her because she was kind to me. Instinct took over, and I began to lick her wound. The bleeding stopped and the wound sealed.”

  He paused, gathering his memories. “She made me swear to hide what I could do. Warned me that the others would kill me if they found out. She told me it was a death offense because those like me not only had the ability to heal, but to force others to be sexually drawn to them. Something in my saliva could make me desirable enough to take away free will.”

  Cathian’s eyes widened. “Ever test that out?”

  “Never. Before today, I’d only bitten Raff, and helped Taznia that once. She made me swear to never do that again for her. I kept my word. Even when she got sick and died.”

  “Raff didn’t try to hump you, did he?” His friend grinned. “That would have been amusing to see.”

  “He didn’t.” Dovis scowled. “That’s not funny. I actually worried about it, but he just seemed drunk.”

  “What are you concerned over then?”

  “When I bit Mari, it was different. My body reacted to her in a way it shouldn’t have.”

  Cathian opened his mouth but closed it. He finally asked, “You became aroused?”

  “Yes.”

  A small smile played at his friend’s lips.

  “Don’t. It’s not amusing.”

  “You think humans are weak and ugly. I told you there’s something amazing about Nara. She turns me on like no one ever has. Don’t feel ashamed if Mari sent blood to your shaft.”

  “When Mari woke, she smiled at me.”

  Cathian looked even more amused.

  “Stop. What if the myth is true, and Mari now feels sexually drawn to me? Perhaps it didn’t happen with Raff because he’s male.”

  Cathian stood. “You worry too much, Dovis. She’s a small alien, you can handle her. What you did was a good thing. We’ll keep an eye on her.” He glanced at the screen with a smirk. “Or you will. She’s alive. That’s all that matters. We’ll deal with it if there are any consequences.”

  Dovis nodded.

  “What are you two whispering about over there?”

  Dovis looked back, meeting York’s curious stare. “We’re discussing if you need training drills on weapons. You didn’t blow up those shuttles when you should have.”

  York snorted. “My orders were to keep them back, not blow them to hell. Accomplished!”

  Chapter Five

  Mari awoke feeling terrific and refreshed. Memories of what happened flashed through her mind as she sat up. That’s when she noticed her shirt was torn at her shoulder.

  She frowned, wondering how that had happened. Maybe when someone from the crew had dragged her out of the crawl space? It was a tight fit in there, over the center of the engines.

  She slid out of bed and entered the bathroom, using it and taking the time to get clean. Once dressed in a fresh outfit, she left her cabin, hunting for another crew member to see what was going on.

  She ran into Midgel when she entered the dining room. The alien was extremely shy but nice. “Are we safe from the pirates?”

  Midgel nodded. “We’ve met up with others and the engines are still running. I heard they’ll have the part we need at the station we’re heading for. How are you?”

  “I’m good. Hungry. Do you mind me having some leftovers? I didn’t feel like using the replicator in my room. Your cooking is much better than what those produce, even if it’s cold. I know it’s not yet mealtime.”

  “You got the engines working, Mari. I’ll make you something.”

  “You don’t have to go out of your way.”

  “I want to. Sit.”

  Mari smiled and took a seat. Midgel disappeared into her kitchen. No crew were allowed back there unless a repair was needed. Nara had told her Midgel guarded her cooking space as if it were a horde of treasure.

  Ten minutes later, the shy woman returned, carrying a plate of cooked meats and vegetables. It smelled delicious.

  “Thank you.”

  “You’re welcome.” Midgel rushed away after bringing her a drink, and didn’t return.

  Mari ate and put her empty dishes in the cleaner near the kitchen, going to the engine room next. No one was down there. She climbed the ladder, entering the crawl space. The panel remained opened and she peered inside, memories of being shocked until she blacked out first and foremost in her mind. It had hurt badly.

  The U coupling she’d rigged remained in place, blue energy flowing over it. She backed away, crawled out, and decided to leave the toolbox there, since she’d have to replace the part soon anyway.

  Next sh