The Alliance Boxset Books 4-6

Chapter 6

Chapter Six

It was well into the early hours of the morning before Destin and Sula slipped out of the house. Search teams and guards still patrolled the area. They nodded to two guards near the back gate and passed at least another six before they made it to the stairs carved into the cliff.

Destin paused at the top of the steps when he felt more than saw the shiver that escaped Sula. He quickly removed his jacket and held it out for her to slip on. His fingers were slow to release the edges of the brown leather. It was only Sula’s glance over his shoulder, reminding him that they weren’t alone that made him let go.

“Thank you,” she murmured with an amused glint and stepped around him to continue down the steps.

“What’s so funny?” Destin asked, turning and falling into step with her.

Sula shook her head. They continued to descend the staircase in silence. He paused when Sula stopped at the bottom and looked up. Overhead, they had a clear view of the beautiful galaxy that looked like a colorful river weaving drunkenly in and out of the stars above them. The soothing sound of the waves lapping at the shore, the muted voices of the warriors working on the intruders’ transport, and the soft caress of the wind filled the night, making the earlier events seem surreal.

“So much has happened since yesterday morning. When I first came to the beach yesterday, I was angry,” she admitted, enjoying the feel of the sand beneath her feet.

“I could tell,” Destin chuckled. “You looked far different than I remembered.”

Sula glanced at him and scowled before she laughed and shook her head. Destin swore the air warmed around them. He nodded to the warrior standing guard at the narrow opening to the cove where Sula left her transport. The guard looked at both of them before he stepped aside.

“I wasn’t sure that you would remember me. You hardly spoke to me when I was on your planet. You and the Trivator warrior made my position very difficult,” she replied with an indignant sniff.

“Yeah, well, it was a case of bad timing,” Destin replied, shoving his hands in his pockets. “There was a lot of s**t going on.”

He vividly remembered his mental state at the time. He had just killed Colbert, and Kali had almost died. He had sacrificed so much, and with Kali gone, he had felt horribly alone. All of those emotions had erupted and left him in a deep, dark place inside his mind. Sula’s sudden appearance had been too much, especially when he was just discovering the true depth of Colbert and Badrick’s atrocities.

On top of everything else, he had been reeling from the monumental task ahead of him, which was to rebuild a city to house nearly a hundred thousand refugees. He had also been dealing with the overwhelming feeling of relief that the battle he fought for so long was finally over as well as the pain of saying goodbye to Kali. The feelings Sula had awakened in him had confused him, and if he were brutally honest, scared the s**t out of him.

He shook off the memories and pulled a hand from his pocket to touch Sula’s arm. Murmuring for her to wait, he walked ahead through the narrow passage. Even though the beach was being patrolled, he didn’t want to take any chances. As long as there was one attacker still alive and free, there was always a chance of danger. He scanned the area carefully before he turned and motioned that it was safe.

“You are very cautious,” she observed, stepping out of the opening in the rock.

“I’ve had to be,” Destin replied with a slight shrug, wincing when he forgot the wound to his shoulder. “It kept me alive.”

“You are in pain,” Sula murmured in concern, stepping closer to him. She raised her hand to touch his arm. “Your shoulder….”

“I’m fine. It’s just a twinge,” he assured her, pulling his other hand out of his pocket, and sliding it along her waist. “Sula, I’m going to kiss you. If you don’t want that, you’d better tell me now.”

“I was hoping you would,” she admitted, stepping closer and sliding her hands up his chest. “You are different, Destin Parks. I have never met a man like you before.”

Surprise and pleasure hit Destin before he mentally shook his head at his reaction. This woman had continued to knock him off balance ever since the first time he’d met her. Maybe it was time he got used to it.

Desire hit him hard when he slid his other arm along her waist. Her shirt lifted when she slid her right hand upward to his shoulder. His left hand was now caressing soft, silky skin. A throaty moan escaped him and he bent forward, capturing her lips.

Her lips parted in a silent gasp and Destin took advantage. He swept his tongue inside her mouth, stroking the tip across hers, and pulled her closer to him. He tilted his head, sealing their lips more firmly together. Their breath mixed, growing hotter and faster when Destin deepened the kiss. Sula’s response was tentative at first, as if she was unsure of how to respond, but within seconds she was matching him touch for touch, exploration for exploration.

Destin caressed the skin at her waist, wanting more. He had been with enough women on Earth to know that he was a good lover, but this felt different. He sucked in a breath when Sula’s hands moved up under his shirt and the cool breeze coming off the ocean touched his heated skin.

“Damn,” he muttered, briefly closing his eyes and drawing in a deep breath.

“I do know that you like this,” Sula stated with confidence. She slid her hand downward to press against the front of his pants. “The evidence of your desire shows that you do, unless you are built different from the Trivator and Usoleum men.”

A hoarse chuckle escaped Destin and he pressed his hips forward so his c**k, the ‘evidence’ that she was talking about, was pressed firmly against her hand. His eyebrow rose when he heard her startled breath and saw her eyes widen. Unable to resist, he captured her lips again, drinking deeply and challenging her to meet his desire with her own.

He pressed her back against the transport. His hips moved back and forth in response to their growing passion. Her legs parted and he stepped between them. Sula broke their kiss with a gasp and leaned her head back against the clear glass. He ran his lips along her jaw to her neck. His hands slowly moved down to her hips and he pressed up against her.

“Destin,” Sula moaned, gasping for breath. “I have never felt this way toward a man before. What are you doing to me?”

It wasn’t so much her words, but the confusion in her voice that broke through the haze of desire and need engulfing his mind and body. Closing his eyes, he continued to press hot kisses along her neck, peppering them with the tip of his tongue and the scrape of his teeth even while he forced himself to start thinking again.

This was neither the time nor the planet for this. Unfortunately, his body wasn’t willing to listen to rational thought. It was ready and willing to do it now and up against the side of the transport. He pressed one last, lingering kiss against her throat before he drew back and gazed down at her with eyes he knew showed his internal struggle.

“You aren’t going to make this easy for me, are you?” he muttered, drawing in a long, hissing breath.

“What… I do not understand. What is this easy?” Sula asked in a barely audible voice, blinking several times as if to clear her vision.

Destin raised his hand and cupped her cheek. His gaze moved to her face as his thumb caressed her skin. He’d never thought about the color of skin before, but the contrast between his dark tan and her light blue coloring was arousing to him.

“How many relationships have you had, Sula?” Destin asked, voicing a question he had never asked any of his previous lovers.

“I…,” she frowned at him and shook her head. Her nose wrinkled slightly with an expression of distaste. “None. The men I have met are… not the type I have found to be attractive. They are generally crude, rude, and arrogant – what is the word I learned on your world? Oh, yes! Ignoramus! I truly liked that word when I learned its meaning.” She pursed her lips together and glared at him. “Of course, that word also perfectly describes my father and brothers most of the time. How my mother ever tolerated the lot of them without suffocating them is beyond me.”

Destin swallowed the chuckle that replaced the expletive he was going to say. Sula was able to coldcock him once again without even being aware of it. Why was he surprised? Hadn’t he already decided that this woman was different from any other woman he’d ever met? She was an alien princess, an innocent, and a fierce fighter – a lethal combination for his peace of mind. He had never met the first, had actively avoided the second, and only knew the last.

“You are dangerous without even knowing it,” he whispered, leaning forward to brush a tender kiss against her lips. “It has been a pleasure meeting you, Sula.”

“You say that as if we will not see each other again,” Sula said, tilting her head and searching his face.

Destin shook his head. “We won’t. Perhaps if things had been different.... Goodnight, Princess,” he said, stepping back and thrusting his hands into his pockets. “Make sure to safety-check your lodging before you go inside.”

“I will,” Sula replied, turning to open the door of the transport before she remembered she was wearing his jacket. “Oh, here.”

“Thanks,” Destin replied, reluctantly pulling a hand out of his pocket to reach for the leather jacket. His fingers brushed her hand in the exchange and he yanked the jacket toward him. “Be safe, Sula.”

Sula nodded before she turned and climbed into the transport. Destin stepped back several feet, giving the alien vehicle room to take off. He saw her gaze down at him. He could see the confusion in her expression. Unable to stop himself, he raised his hand to wave farewell. She responded, her slender hand rising in response before she returned her attention to the controls.

Destin stood on the beach for almost an hour, staring out at the ocean, his mind filled with regret. In another life, it might have been different, but with the challenges and new dangers now facing Earth, it was better to leave love and hope for someone else.

“Someone who isn’t an ignoramus,” Destin murmured, tossing the word into the wind with a shake of his head and a chuckle when he remembered her saying she loved that word. “What a woman!” he added with a deep sigh.