Great. Now I had princess duty complete with politics and public appearances? That was more than I'd bargained on. A lot more.
The food was strange, crisp noodles that tasted like a mixture of orange peel and peaches. A strange purple fruit that was shaped like an apple, but tasted like tart cherries, like the ones my grandmother used to use baking pies.
I did my best, I truly did, but my distaste must have shown on my face. Mara laughed at me. "You know, you can ask the commander to request our programmers include some dishes from Earth."
"I can?" Thank God. I could survive on this stuff, but it wasn't going to win any blue ribbons at a county fair. It would certainly help my waistline.
"Yes. Give him a list. Once he's signed off on it, we'll submit the list to the programming teams on Prillon Prime. They'll request the dishes from Earth, analyze the content and program them into the S-gen unit for you."
"Thank you! That would be wonderful." I wanted to hug her, I truly did.
"We must go now."
I nodded. She'd spent nearly the entire day showing me around the ship, introducing me to everyone we met. I was fine smiling and nodding and generally doing my best to be a people person, but even I had my limits, and they'd all been tested the last two days. I was ready for some peace and quiet. I needed time to think, to figure out what I was going to do.
I followed her out of the cafeteria, down a series of corridors until we arrived at an odd counter. Mara walked up to it, the woman behind it reminded me of a pharmacist at a drug store or even a ticket seller at a movie theater. I wasn't sure exactly what the woman's role might be.
"One ATB, please." Mara requested.
The Prillon woman glanced at me briefly, nodded, then went into a small room behind her to retrieve one. She handed it to Mara, who handed it to me.
"What is this? What's an ATB?" I took the box, about the size of a small shoebox, and tucked it under my arm.
"ATB stands for Anal Training Box. That's not the official name, that's just what we ladies like to call it."
Chapter Ten
Amanda
"What?" She did not just say what I thought she said.
Mara took off down the hallway, clearly expecting me to follow. "I must go to work, so I will return you to your family quarters. Doctor Zakar assured me one of them would return to you soon. I do not want them to be worried if they have already returned."
Neither had, in fact, come back. Alone, I opened the box, curious as to what was in it.
ATB. Anal-seriously?
Within was more than a dozen oddly shaped tools with bulbous ends, strange twisting middles, and open-ended tools that looked more like wrenches, or something that might be used to fix a car. Shaking my head, I ran my fingertip over the long, bumpy length of one extremely odd, silvery item that appeared to be glowing.
I had no idea what any of them were used for, and none appeared to be anything used for the … um … anal area. I had to assume at least one of them would be something Robert might want, like the ReGen wand. The agency sought technology and here was an entire box full. No matter what its use, I was sure the agency's scientists could reverse engineer something useful from it. And the healing tool. I had to get my hands on one of those things, and figure out a way to transport it back home.
I rummaged around and found one item that looked unusual. Pulling it out, I fiddled with it, wondering what it was. It was a bar about six inches long with two circles at each end. Made of lightweight metal, it was fairly basic, looked like a double ended socket wrench. Weird.
Holding the strange item, I wandered through our quarters, fiddling with the ends, trying to figure out what, exactly, it might be used for. I was near the couch when I heard the door slide open, and Grigg call for me.
"Amanda. Have you returned?"
Panicked at being caught with the oddity, I bent quickly to hide it under the dark blue couch cushion.
"Mate!"
Just his deep voice had my heart thumping, my pussy aching. I spun about to look at him where he stood a few steps behind me, hands on his hips. I'd been caught with my hand under the cushions and my ass in the air. I knew my face flushed, and the heat in my face worsened as he raised one dark brow.
"I'm sorry to have left you alone. You look as if Mara has taken care of you."
He closed the distance between us and whispered, "I love the way the dark blue Zakar color clings to your round ass. Although I believe I like you even better in just a sheet."
I heated at his honeyed words, at the eagerness of his tone. Just hearing his voice, having him in the same room was arousing.
"What are you hiding?" he asked, nodding toward the couch.
I had no choice but to pull the object from beneath the thick cushion and hold it up.
"I don't know, actually," I replied, honestly. While hiding it might appear to be odd, I didn't have to lie about anything else. Standing, I pointed to the box. "We retrieved a mating box, but I haven't figured out how the items are used."
Grigg put his fingers on the edge of the box and slid it across the table, peered inside. "Yes, I am familiar with the box. But tell me, mate, why were you hiding that one item specifically?"
"I … I-" I used to be able to fake my way out of any situation. From Australia to Arizona, I could make things up on the fly. But now … "I don't know."
Grigg offered a noncommittal grunt in reply. "You are aware, mate, that the collars we share also allows us to recognize emotions. For example, you should have sensed that I was highly aroused when I came in. My need for you would most likely intensify any arousal you had of your own."
That made sense, for I'd instantly craved him when he returned. I still did, in fact.
"It also senses other emotions, like nervousness." He took the object from me, turning it over in his large hands. "Or lies."
I swallowed then. Damn technology. How the hell was I supposed to be a spy when my every thought and feeling was exposed?
"I really don't know what that is."
He reached into the box and pulled out a much smaller one. "I asked Mara to make sure you received your box. In our haste, we did not collect one from the medical station after your exam."
I flushed at the memory of that exam.
"What are all those things?" I asked.
He opened the lid, lifted a layer I had not yet explored and pulled out what I could easily tell was a butt plug.
I said nothing, my core heated, my pussy and ass clenched. Suddenly ATB made a whole lot more sense. Surely not everything in the box was-
He grinned. "All new mates are given a set for training. We cannot be fully bonded until Rav and I claim you together, fuck you together."
"Oh," I replied, thinking about being between the two of them, their cocks both filling me to the brink. Just like my dream. Damn my wanton body, but everything kept going back to that dream. Two men. Both of them fucking me, filling me, making me theirs.
"Apparently Mara felt we needed not only the basic box of plugs, but much more elaborate supplies."
I pointed to the metal bar object and frowned at it. "That is a sex toy?" I asked.
"A sex toy." Grigg nodded. "I like that term, for this is definitely a toy, one I am eager to play with."
Me? I had doubts about that, for it looked more like a two-headed wrench than a toy.
"You were trying to hide a sex toy in the couch. Tell me once more, why?"
Oh shit. I bit my lip, stared at it. "I … I don't know. It was stupid."
He took it from me, considering.
"Yes, you said that, and I told you that I know the words are a lie."
Yeah, that hadn't worked the first or the second time. Shit.
"You hid it because you didn't want me to use it on you?"
I nodded then, perhaps more fervently than necessary.
"But you don't know what it is. How can you say you won't like it?"
I shrugged because I had no answer.
"What if I told you that you'd like it? That I'd never use something on you that you wouldn't enjoy? Would you trust me to use it with you?"
His eyes were so dark, so serious, and yet his voice was soft and gentle. He was coaxing me, for I had a feeling he wanted to use that toy. On me. Right now.
"It won't hurt?" I asked, eyeing the odd gadget.
"It's a pleasurable pain." When I took a step back and looked skeptical, he added, "Trust me."
I licked my lips and looked at him. Really looked at him. Did I trust him?
"If you don't trust me yet, trust our match. Trust that I know what you like, what you want. What you need."
"I need that?" I pointed to the mystery toy.
"Let's find out. Take off your shirt."
I looked at the small metal object in his hands, then at Grigg. He stood patiently, calmly waiting for me to decide just how adventurous I was willing to be.
"You want me to take off my shirt."
"I want you naked and begging, but we'll start with the shirt."
Shit. Why did he have to say things like that? So damn hot. "What is that thing?" I asked, biting my lip.
He held it up. "This? It's for your nipples."
"My-" Said nipples tightened painfully at the idea of … whatever that thing did.
"Take off your shirt, Amanda."
"I … I-" I continued to balk, now truly a little nervous.