CAPTURED: 9 Alpha Bad-Boys(206)

     



 

"Damn! I clean up pretty good, even if I say so myself," she murmured  with a grin. "Let's see what that pissy-ass tomcat thinks of me now! Who  needs him! I'll show him what he is missing and then some. He'll be  crawling on his furry belly back to me before he knows what is  happening," she added before blowing a mischievous kiss to her  reflection.

She stepped out of the bathroom and quickly packed all of her things  back into her suitcase before picking up her oversized purse and  grabbing the handle of her suitcase. She walked over to the door and  stepped out with a toss of her head at Lodar whose eyes widened in  appreciation as he skimmed her lush figure.

"Gods, Riley," Lodar muttered under his breath. "You are going to cause  Vox to have a stroke. You know you shouldn't pull his tail the way you  do, don't you?"

Riley grinned, showing off the dimples in her cheeks which drew another  groan from Lodar. "You like?" she asked as she twirled around on her  heels and giggled as she heard additional groans from Cross who had come  looking for Lodar.

"Riley, how about running away with me?" Cross asked with a lascivious  smirk. "My world is just as beautiful as Sarafin, and dragons are known  to be better lovers."

Riley's husky laugh drew more men down the corridor to see what was  going on. She walked by Lodar, handing him the handle of her suitcase  with a wink as she threaded her arm around Cross's thick forearm. She  brushed her hair over her shoulder, revealing the pale peach shoulder  that had been hidden by the mass of curls.

"Let's go, boys!" Riley called out as she pulled on Cross, directing him  to the lift. "I have a planet to visit, a king to show what he is  missing out on, and plans for escaping back to my world to make. Who  wants to join me?"

Chuckles filled the corridor along with a loud purring of male  appreciation for the sinful sway to Riley's hips as she walked in her  impossible heels. Lodar looked at the back of the Valdier warrior who  was grinning as he listened to some tale Riley was sharing with him. He  shook his head and actually felt sorry for his friend and leader. He was  going to have his hands full with his little alien mate. Riley on a  mission was not only scary but a truly beautiful thing-as long as she  didn't blow anything up.



Vox's fist clenched and unclenched as he fought the urge to kill the  Valdier warrior who was casting him sympathetic looks as they stood next  to the transporter platform. When Riley had shown up at the departure  tube with at least twenty warriors following behind her, he had been  furious. He wasn't furious by the sight of twenty of his best warriors  glued to her every word. He wasn't even furious with the way she clung  to Cross, though he figured that would come later. No, he was furious at  the ease with which she looked through him as if he didn't even exist.

He calmed a little when he realized it was a ruse. He could smell her  hurt and see the slight tremor in her hand when she reached up to tuck a  strand of hair behind her ear. He knew the other males could smell her  hurt as well and were being very protective of her. When she raised her  eyebrow at him, as if daring him to say or do anything about her  white-knuckled grip on Cross's arm, he had to force himself to take a  deep breath. He needed to be very careful in how he handled her. She was  just stubborn enough to do something crazy-like try to kidnap another  warrior to take her home. A smile tugged at the corner of his mouth as  he remembered her standing in the corridor not too long ago. She had  been so proud of herself when she thought she had Nahuel captured.

"My lord, we are ready," the warrior at the controls to the transporter platform called out.

Vox nodded and stepped up onto the platform. Cross lead Riley up onto  the platform and gently peeled her fingers off his arm. He murmured  something quietly to her before he stepped over to the other square  marking the platform positions. Lodar handed the handle to Riley's  suitcase to another warrior who would make sure it was transported down  on one of the supply shuttles and delivered to the palace later.

"My suitcase," Riley said, taking a step forward with a worried bite to  her lower lip as her eyes remained glued to the huge pink case. "It has  all my worldly possessions in it."

Vox turned and looked into Riley's huge blue eyes and felt the familiar  sense of falling into them. "It will be delivered safely to our rooms at  the palace. I promise nothing will happen to it," he reassured her  quietly.

"But … " Riley dragged her eyes away from Vox's dark, tawny eyes for a  moment to glance at her suitcase before she looked back at him.

"I promise nothing will happen to it. We must go," he replied. "We are expected, and others need to depart as well."

"Will this thing put all my parts back in the right place?" Riley  whispered under her breath, forgetting for a moment that a Sarafin  warrior's hearing could easily pick up what she was saying.

Chuckles were covered as coughs as the warriors heard her fearful  question. "Yes, my little warrior," Vox replied with an amused look in  his eyes before they turned dark with desire as his eyes ran over her  form again. "Everything will be exactly where it should be."

"Including-" Riley's throat worked up and down even as her hand went  protectively to her stomach. "Including our baby?" she whispered.

Vox's eyes softened as he reached out and touched her cheek. "I would  never allow anything to hurt either one of you, my mate. We will talk  later about this ‘marriage' you feel you must have and the jewelry that  you want," he promised huskily.

Riley's eyes brightened until they were shining like the blessed  crystals that sometimes washed up on the shores from their oceans. Vox  cursed that he had been so stubborn earlier for not trying to understand  how important these items were to his mate. He would definitely notify  Viper this afternoon about returning with a "marriage" for his mate. If  something so small put such a wondrous look in her eyes, he would never  deny her anything she requested.

Lodar clearing his throat reminding Vox he was standing in the middle of  the transporter room with dozens of warriors looking at him with goofy  grins on their faces. He felt a heated flush rise up into his cheeks  before he turned and nodded tersely to the warrior to begin transport.



Two hours later, Riley realized she didn't know what to expect when they  left the Shifter. So far, the only things she had experienced were the  trader's ship, the mining asteroid, the old freighter, and the warships.  She definitely didn't expect to see a lush world of such incredible  beauty that she could only imagine that this must be what heaven looked  like.

Tall, dark rose-colored peaks rose above thick forests. The tops of the  massive trees were covered with shimmering mists of white. Dozens of  small flying vehicles rose and sank among the tops of the temples. In  the distance she could see great cliffs rising out of an ocean of royal  blue. Waterfalls tumbled down the ragged cliff rocks, falling in sheets  of white down the edges until it disappeared into the rocks at the  water's edge.

Riley stood on the balcony of the palace gazing out over the alien  world. She giggled as she watched a group of children, some in the shape  of miniature tigers, leopards, and other cat forms, running across an  open garden far below her. She gasped as a pair of strong arms circled  her around the waist and pulled her back against a hard, muscled body.

"I love the feel of you in my arms," Vox said quietly, rubbing his chin  against her hair. A deep purring began vibrating his chest. "I love  everything about you."

Riley turned in his arms with a disbelieving giggle. "Including my temper and smart mouth?"

Vox grinned down at her with warm eyes. He brushed his lips against her  softer, plumper ones. "Especially your smart mouth," he whispered  huskily. "You will make my men think I am turning into a kitten. I stop  thinking when I am around you," he groaned as he rubbed against her  letting her feel how aroused he was.

A shuddered rippled through her before she studied his face carefully.  "Did you mean it earlier?" Riley asked serious, hushed tone. "That you  would talk about us getting married?"

"I would give you anything you asked for," he admitted before capturing her lips with his.

He meant what he said. He did lose all sense of thought when he was  around her. Everything about her drove him crazy, from her scent, to the  touch of her skin, to the sound of her voice when she was muttering  under her breath or giving him hell. He wanted it all. Every fiery,  passionate part of her.

He broke away with a frustrated growl when he heard the pounding on the  outer door to their living quarters. The insistent sound could only mean  his family-namely his father-had discovered his mating. A wave of  protectiveness washed through him as he stared down at his mate's  flushed face.