Chapter Twelve
Jaspar threw back his head and roared with anger, and flames shot through the air. He glared at the door. “Ternamera, I will burn the door open if I need to.”
The door actually seemed to go pale.
Liza looked at him curiously. “Did you just call the ship by a name?”
“Yes, all the Drakken ships are sentient. They are run by an artificial intelligence that is mixed in with some of our DNA. This ensures that our ships always remain loyal to us.” He snorted. “The Harbinger ships are known to be quite nasty. They have started several wars on their own.”
“You and the Harbingers developed the same technology?”
He nodded impatiently, pacing back and forth. “We only split about five hundred years ago,” he said. “There was a falling out between two cousins who both thought they had the right to rule our home planet. The Drakken was the one who was in the right, of course.”
He returned his attention to the door. “If I burn a hole in you, it will hurt,” he said.
“But I cannot open the door – I am not capable!” the voice protested, sounding quavery and frightened.
“You leave me no alternative.” Scales covered Jaspar’s body, and he began growing taller.
“Jaspar, don’t!” Liza cried, putting her hand on his arm.
Jaspar turned to look at her. “I am sorry, my heart. I must. She has it coming.”
“But it’s your mother’s fault, not hers.”
“Oh thank you, kind human,” the ship said, still speaking in a quavery voice.
Jaspar’s brows drew together in anger. “Oh, do not trouble yourself – my mother will also be most severely punished.”
“No, I do not want you to hurt or punish anyone on my behalf!” Liza insisted, stepping between him and the door. Of course, if he really wanted to, he could just blast the flame right over her head, but she suspected that he wouldn’t.
“But we obviously cannot to stay here forever.” Jaspar shook his head. “And I have no intention of abandoning my plans to marry you, father your children, and have deliciously excellent sex with you for the rest of your life.”
He had to mention sex.
Liza found herself stroking his arm, trying to calm him.
She was obligated to distract him, wasn’t she? After all, if she didn’t, he would hurt the ship. The ship was frightened.
Basically, she had no choice but to seduce Jaspar. It was the only decent thing to do.
“Tell me about this deliciously excellent sex that we’ll have,” she said, tipping her head back.
Jaspar’s scales receded, leaving smooth skin, and he stared down at her. “What would you like to know?” he said, his voice gone hoarse.
“Well, actually, it might be more effective if you showed me. We humans have a saying that actions speak louder than words.”
“You humans are quite wise,” Jaspar said, and he scooped her up in his arms and strode over to the bed, all thoughts of leaving temporarily abandoned.
This time she undressed for him, slowly peeling away her clothes in a strip-tease. His eyes never left her body, drinking in the sight of each curve, every inch of skin she revealed.
But he was too impatient to have her. When she was down to her panties, he hauled her against him, bunching the delicate fabric in one big hand and tearing it away from her body.
She gave a squeak of aroused surprise, but it was smothered when he pressed his mouth against hers in a burning kiss. His lips moved against hers with firm assurance, plucking and pressing and teasing. And when she opened her mouth on a sigh, he teased her with darting, sliding motions of his tongue.
He pressed her back against the bed, drawing her arms together over her head so her breasts were pushed towards him. He held her wrists in one large hand as he bent his head to suckle on the rosy tips, tugging on a silver thread of sensation that ran directly to her clit.
Liza gasped and squirmed against him, then shivered as he moved down her body, kissing her breastbone, lapping at the dip of her navel with his tongue, grazing her hipbone with his teeth. His breath was hot against her skin. Her hands went to his head, her fingers winding into his ebony tresses as he stroked and kissed every inch of her.
