"Thank you," Valmir says. "Flattery isn't necessary. Your touch will suffice."
How did I getsolucky, I think sarcastically. Did I break a mirror back home? Have bananas on a boat? Whistle at night? I cross my arms over my chest so he doesn't try to reach for my hand again. "Well, my hut is occupied, so I'm out of ideas."
"I could drop trou right here," Valmir says. "I'm fine with that. I don't care if anyone watches."
I shoot him a scandalized glance. Is he serious? We're in theopen, in the midst of camp. There's a bunch of huts nearby, and I don't know if they're occupied right now. Someone's fishing down the beach. I can hear the laughter coming from the main firepit a short distance away. Anyone could wander through the area and see what we're up to. This isnotprivate. I'd be better off telling Dawn to close her eyes and just jerking him off in front of her.
There's probably something wrong with me in that the idea of getting caught kinda turns me on with its wrongness.
"I'm not doing this out in the open," I say, despite the curl of pleasure in my belly. "Some things should be private."
"Because you don't want anyone to know you're touching me?"
"Bingo."
"Or that you're enjoying yourself when you touch me?"
I say nothing to that. I'm not going to give him the pleasure of a response. To admit that would give him the edge over me, and there's no way I'm going to give him any kind of advantage.
"Come on," he says, and holds a hand out to me again. "I know a place."
I shoot him another withering look before slapping my hand reluctantly into his. He just gives it a squeeze, as if he's amused at my response, and I fight the urge to laugh, too. Sometimes it feels like the arguing and friction between us is...fun? But that's fucked up.
Valmir leads me down the beach in silence, past the last few huts that straggle at the fringes of the settlement. We keep going, even when the cliffs cut into the water and the sand disappears. He finds the thinnest rock ledge that will take us along the shore's edge, and I let go of his hand to hold onto the rocks. This feels like a lot of damn work for a hand job. But before I can point this out, we come to a narrow crevice in the rock itself, and he pulls me in next to him.
It's a cave, or at least a sliver of one. No wider than an arm-span and not very deep, but the perfect spot for us to sneak a few moments away. The sea crashes against the rocks, spraying us with mist, and I gaze at my surroundings in impressed surprise. "This is what you thought of when I said we needed privacy?"
"It's the only place where no one else would bother to show up."
"You think they won't?" I arch a brow at him. "How are you so certain?"
"Let's just say that if they do, I'll shove them into the water." He mimes thrusting an arm out, and the cave is shallow enough that it would indeed knock anyone into the rocking surf below.
And despite myself, I snort with laughter. Valmir is very unlike the kind, gentle sa-khui men that inhabit this world. He's cold and cynical, but there's an edge of humor that always makes me laugh. I appreciate that he's skeptical. It makes me feel less alone when I feel equally dubious. I appreciate it, even if he does get on my damn nerves a lot of the time.
"So? Will this do?" he prompts.
I place my hand boldly upon his groin. "Do me a favor and shut up already, all right?"
He hisses in a breath, his eyes turning to hooded slits. Even through the blue of the khui's shine, his pupils contract, turning catlike and vertical. He goes still under my touch.
"That's better," I whisper. Sometimes a man just needs to shut up and let a girl have her way with him. I rub the bulge of his cock through his leathers, outlining him with the drag of my palm. His dick is absolutely choke, but that doesn't surprise me. He exudes the energy of someone who's never given a thought to how his cock measures up to others. He's tall and broad, as all the gladiators are, so it stands to reason that he'd be big all over. I rub the length of his shaft with the heel of my hand,glancing up at his face. "Anything strange I need to know about?"
He makes a strangled sound. Panting, Valmir bares his teeth. "Thought...you didn't want me to talk."
"You can talk if I ask you questions." I give the length of him a squeeze.
"Define 'strange' for me."
"I don't know. You're an alien. Are we dealing with tentacles? Hooks? Something else equally terrifying? I just want to know what I'm in for." I pause, realizing what I've said, and quickly add, "If we decide to do this whole resonance thing, I mean."
His eyes flutter closed and he tilts his head back. I notice his hands are gripping the rocky wall behind him, as if he needs support to remain upright. All from a bit of rubbing? Adorable. "I...don't know what a human cock looks like. I can't tell you if mine is different or not."
"You haven't eyeballed Jason's junk, then?"
He growls at me, offended.
I bite back a laugh. "That's a no. All right, fair enough. Never hurts to ask. " I continue to pet his cock through his leathers, and his tail swishes madly against his thigh. His teeth are gritted, his body tense. "Should I stop? You seem a little on edge."
