energetically, the strings of multicolored beads and painted shells that were draped over her chest rattled. “We can spend the whole day together, have lunch at the mall, too. I’ll just need to stop at my dress shop for a little while, and I have a polishing appointment this afternoon.”
“What? Hold on.” I waved both hands at her, feeling rather confused. “When did he speak with you? He hasn’t said anything to me. It’s the spice market I wanted to go to. Omni?” I called back into the main room. “Did the Colonel add any appointments to the schedule for me today.”
“No. Madam Kyradus,” came the calm voice of the AI.
“The spice market is adjacent to the Central Mall,” Lievoa spoke a little slower, probably to give me some time to catch up. “Grevar called me a couple of days ago, asking me to take you shopping because he didn’t want you to go alone. I said I’d have to look at my schedule, my days are pretty busy, you know.”
She rubbed her chin, pausing for a moment.
“Well, come to think of it, I don’t believe I ever got back to him to confirm.” She shrugged. “Anyway. I happen to have some time today. And here I am. Do you want to come or not?”
“Oh, I do! Give me a moment, I’ll be ready in no time.” I pivoted on my heels to run up to the bedroom, then turned back to her. “Do I need to change? What do you think?”
Lievoa gave me a critical once-over. “No. This dress is lovely. One of my favorites. You may just want to add some jewelry, it looks kind of bare otherwise.”
“Okay, come wait in the main room.” I waved her to follow me inside. “Would you like some tea in the meantime? Maybe?”
“No. We’ll eat at the mall. Hurry up, please. I’m a very busy woman and have places to be.”
Leaving her in the main room, I ran upstairs. In the closet, I changed from my comfy ballet flats into a pair of dressier closed-toe sandals. Roaming through the box of jewelry I had brought with me, I searched for something more appropriate for Neron.
My thin silver chains and fresh-water pearls seemed way too understated for this planet. And I didn’t dare wear the jewelry set that the Colonel had given to me—his priceless family heirloom—to the mall.
Finally, I pulled out a long string of large, bright glass beads I thought were pretty but too big and loud to wear to most places on Earth. In Voran, these should do just fine.
I wound the string of beads around my neck a few times then ran downstairs.
“I’ll let the Colonel know I’m leaving!” I shouted to Lievoa on my way to the stairs leading to the exercise room on the lower level.
The invigorating scent of heat and male—the Colonel’s scent—reached me even before I’d made it to the last step.
He was training in the middle of the room, sparring with one of the stuffed electronic dummies.
Dressed in nothing but a pair of tight shorts, the Colonel attacked the dummy while gracefully evading its maneuvers. Not restricted by his stiff uniform, his movements were both smooth and powerful. His fur, slick with sweat, was plastered to his bulging muscles underneath.
I stared at him, mesmerized by this blatant display of masculinity. Whether anyone thought the Colonel handsome or not, no one would deny his inescapable animalistic appeal. My body had responded to it from the very first moment we’d met. Knowing him so much better now had only weakened my defenses against it.
I was no longer afraid of his raw power; I craved to feel it in other ways. I imagined those arms wrapped around me in a crushing embrace, his mouth devouring mine with abandon. Those trim hips of his fitted perfectly between my thighs... I wanted him to take me with the same passion he put into the fight.
Since that first night when he fiercely tried to claim me as his wife, there hadn’t been anything physical between us, save for an occasional hand-holding. And now, I was afraid there never would be. The thought filled me with a deep sense of loss.
His tail swaying back for balance, the Colonel crouched down, evading yet another strike from the dummy. He then kicked his hoof out, landing it in the robot’s side.
A holographic display flickered to life over the dummy’s head, its impassive voice read aloud the score of the strength and number