other and it felt so, so good. I kept waiting for him to lean down and kiss me, and I thought when he moved to the floor of the hut, we were going to get down and dirty into a nice, steamy, makeout session. I know resonance means sex, but I also assumed we'd move into things slowly.
Instead, he apparently just wants me to lie down and spread my legs.
And I have a real problem with that.
Maybe it's due to how unsettled I've felt all day. This is a strange place, and I've resonated to a complete stranger. I can tell his tribesmates don't like me. Every time I hide behind T'chai, one of them gives me a disgusted look, and I'm reminded of how irritated everyone was with me back in the other tribe because of my hiding. Of course, their disapproval just made me want to hide more, because it's not a good feeling to be disliked.
Now, though? Here? I'm not about to just roll over and let T'chai mate me without getting pleasure out of it. I want kisses. I want foreplay. I want tenderness. I don't just want a quick pump and dump.
So I put a hand on his chest. "No." I shake my head to emphasize the word. "No."
To my relief, he pulls back. T'chai runs a hand down his face and sits back on his heels. I can tell he's aching—I'm aching too. But he doesn't get to just use me like I'm a body and not a person.
"I like you, and I know this is inevitable, but I'm not ready." I shake my head, scooting backward and sitting up. "I need a little bit of wooing here."
T'chai says something in that choppy, garbled language of his. He presses his hand to his chest and repeats a word over and over, then points at my chest.
"Yes. Resonance, I know." I put a hand into the air. "That doesn't mean you get to go to town on me." There's a confused look on his face, and an idea occurs to me. "Are you a virgin?" Surely not. He looks to be about my age…but there are no women here and I don't know if that's a recent occurrence or not. Maybe he's had women in the past and this is just a scouting party…but these huts are stone and look old, so I don't know if that answer fits.
It could just be that alien women have a hair-trigger and they don't need foreplay. Wouldn't that be nice? But even as much as I'm turned on and needy from the khui buzzing in my chest, I need more. I glance down at his impressive, straining equipment. Yeah, I'm going to need to be really, really wet and ready for this to work between us. "I'm not opposed to sex, T'chai," I say, looking him over. Really, really not opposed because he's utterly gorgeous and hard and has the most impressive equipment I've ever seen. "I just need to get good and ready first."
He tilts his head, studying me with those hooded eyes, and I know he doesn't understand a word.
I'll just need to show him instead.
"Here." I get up on my knees and crawl forward, then put a hand on his shoulder to steady myself. Like this, he's eye level with my breasts and his gaze falls to them. Just that small, hungry look makes me want him to touch them, but he doesn't reach out. Fighting back a sigh, I take his hand in mine and boldly put it between my legs.
T'chai groans, his startled gaze going to mine.
"Feel," I say, and I take his finger and glide it through my folds. I'm only slightly damp, at my core, and I stroke his finger through the wetness. "I need more of that." I could absolutely get more of that just by riding his hand, but I'll save that for later.
He narrows his eyes and gives me a look that tells me he doesn't understand. His finger presses against my core and he murmurs something.
I pull his hand away and point at his fingertips. They're a little moist but that's it. "Look, I need more than this if we're going to have sex." I glance around the hut, spot the water bowl, and get to my feet. "This is the most embarrassing demonstration ever," I mutter to myself as I scoop a handful of water and move to his side. I pour it back over his