Shift Out of Luck(23)

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As one of the few humans stranded on the ice planet, I should be happy that I have a new home. Human women are treasured here, and one alien in particular has made it clear that he wants me. It's hard to push away the sexy, flirtatious Aehako, when all I want to do is grab him by his horns and insist he take me to his furs.

But I've got a terrible secret - the aliens who abducted me are back, and thanks to the translator in my ear, they can find me. My presence here endangers everyone...but can I give up my new life and the man I want more than anything?



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AEHAKO


There are tracks in the snow, and I follow them out of the caves and onto the nearby ridge, where Maylak's healing plants grow in abundance. They are wedged into a small valley, buffered from the worst of the winds. Kira is here, grabbing leaves off of a plant angrily, a scowl on her face.

She turns and glares at me as I approach. Am I the recipient of some of her anger? I grin to myself. Her cheeks are flushed with that unusual pink color that some find ugly in humans. I find it charmingly adorable. She's so many interesting colors - pink and brown, and her eyes are the vivid khui blue courtesy of the symbiont. "Hello, my small friend," I call out in greeting.

"Not your friend," she mutters. "And I'm not small."

I chuckle at that. "You should pull a few of the intisar plant there," I tell her. "It's good for eyesight."

She shoots me another glare.

I don't mind. I prefer her angry expressions to the sadness in her eyes that is so often there.

"I don't need herbs for my eyesight," she tells me.

"No?" I tease and move to her side, then point at another bush. "That one is for potency."

She gives me a shocked look, and the pink returns to her cheeks.

"I do not need it, of course," I tell her. "My cock can stay erect for many hours without flagging. It is mostly for the elders or men that have been ill for a long time and wish to couple with their mates."

The noise she makes is strangled. "I don't want to hear about your...penis." She shoots me another vicious look. "Maybe you should go and talk to your friend about it more. She seems interested."

"Are you jealous?" I ask, pleased. I've tried to make it clear to Kira that I am interested in courting her, but she's rebuffed me at every turn. Has she changed her mind? I admire her fine brown hair as it blows in the wind and imagine it spilling over my chest.

And then I have to adjust my breeches again.

"Jealous? Ha! Why should I be jealous? I'm ugly, remember?" She taps the shiny metal shell attached to her ear. "I heard every word of your conversation!"

I cannot keep the delighted grin from my face. She did hear me speaking to Asha. And she is jealous. This pleases me greatly.

Perhaps Kira is not so aloof after all. It's time to present her with my courting gift.