The Alliance Boxset Books 4-6

Chapter 9-2

“Lesson sixteen,” Sula muttered, staring at the screen. “No, that isn’t it. Lesson twenty-one, lesson twenty-two.”

Frustrated, she skimmed the contents, searching for anything that could explain what happened earlier. With growing aggravation, she closed the educational files her mother had given her. So far, she had not discovered anything that explained the intense physical reaction to Destin’s touch.

Her people did not touch lips together. They showed their affection by pressing their foreheads and fingers together. While the files showed her how to relieve her own discomforts, they did not go into detail about the physical relationship between a man and woman like the human PORN files did. Even her brothers’ files were only slightly more descriptive.

Deciding she had wasted enough time and energy on the subject, she opened the files pertaining to Badrick’s legacy and the current environment on Earth. The more she read about Badrick, the more she wished the former Usoleum Councilor was still alive so she could kill him. It was obvious the male had some mental issues that should have been diagnosed before his assignment to any position. Sula suspected it was only his family’s high position in the Usoleum government that had shielded him. She would have to recommend some reform in that area.

Leaning forward, Sula rested her chin on the palm of her hand and stared out into space. The small, quiet room was nearly empty. There were only five others in the room set aside for relaxation; two couples who were talking quietly with each other and a male warrior sitting near the back wall, asleep.

Setting her tablet aside, Sula reached into the small bag she’d brought with her and pulled out the game Chelsea had given her. It was in the shape of a triangle and contained numerous holes in it. Opening the clear bag containing all the pieces, Sula inserted the colored pegs into all the holes but one. Over the next several minutes, she played the game, trying to leave only one peg remaining.

“I’m just plain stupid,” she muttered with a sigh, gloomily staring at the three remaining pegs.

“Maybe for sneaking out on me, but otherwise I’d say you were pretty smart,” an all-too-familiar masculine voice said, pulling her out of her reverie.

Sula’s head jerked up and she twisted in her seat. Her gaze softened when she saw Destin standing beside her. Her lips curved when he glanced down at the game and grinned.

“So, that is where you learned the word you like,” he murmured before returning his gaze to her face. The grin on his face faded and his expression grew more distant. “Do you mind if I join you?”

“Yes…,” Sula started to say before she released a sigh. “Yes, I would like for you to join me, not that I would mind.”

“Good,” Destin replied, swiveling the chair so he could slide onto it. He sat forward, clasping his hands together, and gazed at her in silence for a few seconds before he spoke. “Why did you leave?”

Sula bit her lip and turned her gaze to the game in front of her. Her fingers played with one of the pegs, turning it inside the hole. She blinked when Destin gently placed his strong fingers over hers. The contact sent a wave of yearning through her. Almost immediately, she felt her n*****s harden and her stomach clench in remembrance of the feel of his hands against her flesh.

“I needed time to think,” she admitted, glancing at him. “What happened… It was very unusual for me. Everything about my reaction to you is unusual. I am trying to understand it.”

“Do you have any regrets?” Destin asked, tightening his grasp on her hand when she started to pull away.

“No,” Sula replied, staring into his eyes.

The corner of Destin’s lips moved upward and his eyes glimmered with an expression of satisfaction. He released her and sat back in his seat. A wry expression crossed his face and he turned his head to stare out of the window into the blackness of space.

“Good,” he finally said, turning back to look at her. “I was ready to fight if you tried to tell me you didn’t enjoy it as much as I did.”

“Oh, I enjoyed it very much,” Sula retorted, flushing a darker blue at her impulsive response.

She could feel the heat intensify when Destin chuckled. Her lips pressed together at his slightly smug expression. That he could so easily cause her to lose her composure made a flash of irritation sweep through her.

“Where did you get the game?” he asked, nodding to the wooden toy.

“From a human nurse named Chelsea,” Sula replied, picking up the pegs and inserting them into the wooden board. “When I was on your planet, I caught a horrible virus that made me miserable. I was afraid, because I was inoculated against all known diseases, but I guess it did not work for the cold virus. It had been a long time since I felt so poorly. I went to the healer on my assigned base for medical attention. Chelsea attended to me and became my friend. I hope to see her again when we arrive. I have a gift for her. She gave me this game and several files which I found to be very helpful.”

“What kind of files?” Destin asked, curiously.

Sula’s face darkened again and she looked down at the game again. “Files to help me understand humans better,” she murmured, reluctant to explain exactly which ones.

“Documentaries?” Destin pressed as if sensing she was holding back from telling him everything.

“Yes. Well, some of them,” she replied, biting her lower lip and peeking at him through her lashes. “Some were called romances. I wanted to know why she and her mate pressed their lips to each other. It did not look like it was done to help the other breathe, but as a sign of affection. I thought it important to gather as much information as I could about humans while I was assigned to your world. This was an area I did not think to research before I arrived.”

“What other files were there? You said ‘some of them’,” Destin asked, sitting forward and pulling the game toward him.

“They were more detailed instructional files about human mating rituals,” she stated with a shrug of her shoulders. “They were interesting, but I enjoyed the romance files better. I did give the other files to my brothers, who appear to be enjoying them from the number of requests I have received for more, now that they have discovered I am returning to your world. I swear I wouldn’t be surprised if Sirius ends up appearing at my quarters. His questions are irritating.”

“What type of questions?” Destin asked, pausing in the act of jumping over one of the pegs in her game.

Sula waved her hand in the air. “Sirius is an ignoramus. I have given up trying to understand his questions and usually delete them if they are not relevant to my assignment. You have to understand my brother; he is always trying to get me in trouble. I learned at a very young age to avoid his traps,” she responded, frowning at the single peg remaining on the wooden game board. “How did you do that?!”

A devilish grin curved Destin’s lips and he sat forward. “Come back to my living quarters and I’ll show you,” he suggested.

Sula’s lips twitched in response. “Something tells me this might take a while to learn,” she teased, suggestively stroking one of the pegs.

Destin’s eyes narrowed and he laid his hand over hers. “You are dangerous,” he murmured. “What’s even more worrisome is that now you know it.”

Sula twisted her hand under his and stroked his palm. “I do my research,” she retorted, not backing down.

She pulled her hand free, taking the game with her. She quickly returned the items to the clear bag before sliding it into a larger one. Slipping out of her chair, she smiled at Destin. Her gaze ran over him and she could feel the heat rising again.

“Damn, Sula,” Destin swore under his breath, standing up and adjusting his pants. “You keep looking at me like that and we might not make it back to my quarters.”

The warrior sitting in the corner sat up and grinned at them. It was only then that she realized the other two couples already left. Besides Destin and her, there was only the warrior who she suspected had been awake since the moment Destin entered the room. She refused to be intimidated. Instead, she stepped closer to Destin, reaching up to brush a kiss across his lips even as her hand brushed across the front of his jeans.

“I wonder if the lift has a surveillance camera,” she whispered, turning and walking toward the door.

Her chin lifted and she kept her focus forward when she heard Destin’s muttered curse and soft threat. The smile she had been hiding grew when he quickly caught up to her and wrapped his arm around her. She would have plenty of time later to do the research her father assigned to her. For now, she was going to enjoy doing research of a different kind.