Possessing Providence(9)
Her back stiffened, she looked right into his eyes. “Well, you’re not a beast. Your scars look painful; I’m sorry you got hurt. B-but I think you’re…you’re very handsome.” Her pretty, round cheeks infused with such alluring reddish colour.
For a moment he disbelieved her until she again reached out and touched the side of his face. The warmth of her touch seared into his skin.
“Sometimes, scars only make a man—or I guess in your case, Kelon—even more attractive.”
She was being foolish. “No.” He shook his head. “Scar not good, no female want me, so I become strong fighter, protect my people. Now, I protect you.”
“You certainly look big and mean enough to protect anyone. Thank you. But whoever made you feel not good enough for a female, I’d like to have some angry words with them. I know my opinion doesn’t matter, but your scar makes you look distinctive and badass sexy.”
Why her words made his chest feel funny and light, he did not know. Why did this female stir up so many unknown strange emotions within him? It was dangerous to let physical attraction rule his mind. He needed to protect her until they could escape. Nothing more.
As he watched her skin colour to different shades of pink and red, the more aroused he became. All too easily, he was losing the battle to fight his attraction to her.
Pull way, keep your distance. Try as he might, he could not force himself away.
“What’s your name?”
“Zelron.”
“Cellroone?”
She misunderstood his strangled use of the human words. “No, Zell-ron.”
“Zel-ron?”
He nodded and her eyes lit up and her lips curved up in a smile. Damn the Fires of Elron! Her smile was the loveliest thing he had ever seen, brighter than any star nebula. He wanted to see more of her smiles and less of her frowns.
He reached out taking a few strands of stray hair, feeling their silky softness between his fingertips. He was certain humans did not have such brightly coloured hair. “Not human hair?”
“Oh, yes, that’s just me trying to rebel against, well, everything. I dyed it like this.”
He was confused. “Why?”
“I don’t like my real hair; trust me brown is plain and boring. You don’t like my hair colours?”
He frowned, not knowing the right human words to tell her how strange, yet beautiful she looked to him. “I like. It is like colour in sky of waterfalls.” He let go of her hair and made a sweeping, arch gesture.
Her bright smile again produced the funny, fluttery feeling inside his chest. Damn the Fire Demons, he is a warrior! Years of training helped him utterly control his mind and body, but before him sat the single creature who was easily unhinging everything he’d learned and mastered.
“You mean a rainbow?”
He nodded. “Hu-mon words hard. Rain-bow, yes.”
“Your human words, or English, are really good.”
“I listen, I learn what I hear.”
“See, you’re really smart as well as, uh, very handsome. But…” She lowered her voice, leaning in closer.
He inhaled more of her sweet floral scent. His hand reached out and gripped the metal frame of the bunk to keep from grabbing her and pulling her against him. Would all that round softness fit against his harder frame? Why the hell was he thinking like that?
“Despite what those assholes said, people will notice I’ve gone missing. Someone will call the authorities and I’m positive someone will rescue us.”
Naive female. He thought that once also, but time continued to drag by. No one knew they were hidden away. By all accounts, his own people would presume him dead, killed in battle.
Zelron let out a vicious growl, startling the poor female. She paled. He pushed himself back from the bunk to the far wall, and turned around, drawing in slow, measured breaths.
She is not for me, even if she is not repulsed by my scars. I want her, claim her! Every part of his soul screamed. He struggled to push the thoughts out of his mind.
He needed to get a tight grip on his body and wildly-swinging emotions. Maybe it was because he was so starved of interaction with anyone.
“Kelon! You going to share your little human female?” Brath, the Xerson in the cell next to his, called out. Zelron heard the dog sniffing the air.
“Silence, Xerson dog. I will never allow you near her!” Rage burned through him.
“She is ugly. I do not know why you chose to protect her. I would have liked to see a human dismembered instead of one of us.”
Zelron punched the wall, imagining it was the Xerson’s head, and welcoming the pain in his hand. It helped distract him from the throbbing need of his body. He shook his head, knowing what his body wanted, even though his mind resisted.