They all seemed surprised. Even Vile. It is to the shame of my family that I admit a certain affection for the barbarian. Probably a disease I picked up during my time planet-side, one I cant seem to rid myself of. Nonetheless, my need for her is potent. Possibly terminal and most definitely emasculating. I shall require many deaths to make up for this weakness lest it tarnish my reputation.

Not exactly the most romantic declaration, but it was a start.

Things moved quickly after that. In no time at all, she was standing in some kind of pressurized airlock, Snaggle Tooth holding her upper arm in a tight grip, which had her on tiptoe, given his short arms but extreme height.

His piggy crew"which werent as adorable as the Muppets Pigs in s.p.a.ce version"had their guns aimed, half on her, half on the door.

Click. Hiss. Whirr.

The silence was broken only by the machine sounds as a docking tube was sent from Viles ship to Snaggles, or so they explained when she asked how they planned to make the trade, given she wasnt exactly sure they had a s.p.a.cesuit in her size.

The door slid open, and there was Vile. More handsome than ever, wearing an open-necked white shirt, tight-fitting black breeches, and dark boots that went almost to his knees.

He appeared rakish and completely at ease. The jerk. And here she was dirty and still wearing the same rags.

He held up the coveted disk, which glinted benignly. All this trouble over a stupid ornament that had hung on her Christmas tree for years.

The grip around her upper arm tightened. How do I know its the real thing? Snaggle asked.

Vile rolled his eyes. Oh please. Dont tell me your detection unit hasnt already scanned it for authenticity. His expression hardened. Now release my woman.

My woman. How she liked the sound of that.

With a flick of his wrist, Vile sent the artifact spinning in the air.

Thrust from Snaggle Tooth, Jilly stumbledright into her purple dudes arms. He hugged her to him, and she hugged him back.

The treasure is mine, crowed her lizard captor. Disengage the ships.

Double crossing b.a.s.t.a.r.d. Vile only barely managed to get them in the pa.s.sageway before the door slid shut.

Why that two timing, jerk! she huffed.

Hate him later. Now we must run before we are sucked into s.p.a.ce.

Excuse me?

No time for questions. Vile tossed her over his shoulder and ran along the connecting tube while air hissed behind them.

Whats happening? she squeaked.

Hes pressurizing the lock. Once its done, hes going to release our pa.s.sageway.

That sounds bad.

Only if youre a flesh-based organism.

Then run faster, she yelled.

Bossy female, he grumbled. Yet he did put on even more speed. Just enough, too, because hed no sooner slid them into another airlock and slapped a b.u.t.ton to shut the door than a cold breeze whipped up behind them and then whistled as it tried to suck them back out.

Luckily the door sealed the portal shut before they could become Popsicles in s.p.a.ce.

Leaving her with her purple alien.

Now what? she asked, as he didnt seem inclined to put her back down.

Now we hit the decontamination chamber, barbarian. You reek.

Chapter Twelve.

Every collector has a prized possession, the one item he would protect with his life and keep above all others. When you find it, guard it fiercely, cherish it, and enjoy it. Its yours. Your treasure. An excerpt from The Fine Art of Acquisition.

Perhaps he should have not referred to her less than odorous condition. As he deposited Jilly in the decontamination chamber, she glared at him.

You really dont know how to sweet talk a girl.

Why would I speak sweetly? I am a male, not a woman or a politician.

Oh, youre a man all right. One with a one-track mind, she added as he literally tore the clothes from her body exposing her, and he also tweaked her nipples in the process. Who could resist the pert buds?

He quickly shed his own garments, displaying his erection.

I have missed you. Surprise, he didnt choke making the admission.

I missed you, too, but Ill admit Im kind of baffled by the fact youre going to waste time in here with me when Snaggle Tooth is getting away with your prize.

Are you so sure of that?

I feel like Im missing something.

No. We are just in time.

Vhyl placed his hand on a depression in the wall, and the opaque white surface turned into a video screen, one showing s.p.a.ce, and a certain alien vessel.

Is that"

Fazirds ship, yes.

Is he firing on us? Jilly asked.

Yes. He noted her puzzled expression. I have the shields engaged. None of his puny weaponry can penetrate it. Now watch.

The explosion was sudden. The enemy ship on screen exploded, the intensity of it enough to send a tremble through his own vessel.

She laughed. Take that, sucker! Im going to take a guess here and say you blew him up?

Of course. As if Id let him live after allowing him to see my ign.o.ble and first ever defeat at the hands of a female.

You mean you killed him because he heard you admit you cared for me.

Yes.

She snickered. Dude, that is seriously warped.

I also couldnt allow him to live because he dared touch you.

Not into sharing?

I dont share what is mine.

Its funny you should say that, she said with a smile. Because Ive got jealousy issues too, and Im telling you right now that while were together you better forget all those other alien b.i.t.c.hes.

Only the canine-based ones? he asked with a frown.

All females.

Your jealousy is quite becoming. And it was. The malicious glint in her eyes, the evil twisted smile as she implied murderous intent.

He could not resist a moment longer. As the cleansing waves of the decontamination unit swept them, he yanked her into his arms and bent his head to embrace her, hungry for a taste of her. She met him with a fierce pa.s.sion, leaning up on her toes so as to fully engage him in the kiss.

In but moments, both their breaths emerged in fast pants, her power to arouse him as stupendous as always. He sucked at her full lower lip while her hands clung at this neck, drawing him closer.

Slipping his tongue past the seam of her lips, he pa.s.sed it over her blunt-edged teeth before engaging hers. The moist twining of their flesh only served to fuel his need for more. More of her.

Urgency made him greedy to skip some of the pleasures in foreplay so he could claim her, this time in a more permanent fashion than ever before. His hands clasped her waist, and he lifted her so that he could position her against the wall. With Jilly pinned there, he moved his grip to her b.u.t.tocks, cupping their full roundness and kneading.

The softness of her skin never failed to delight him, but her eager cries of pleasure enraptured him. She devoured his mouth and sucked on his tongue with pa.s.sion. It awed him still that her level of desire seemed to match his own. Ever better it was neither feigned nor contrived. It wasnt paid for. She wants me.

With her braced against the wall, he could easily support her with one arm anch.o.r.ed around her waist. Good thing because he needed one free so he could check the level of arousal in her s.e.x.

Moist.

Hot.

Quivering.

He could have shuddered with the evidence of her readiness for him.

As per their previous encounter, toying with the nub at the mouth of her s.e.x caused her to mewl and squirm.

Vile. She groaned his name, still p.r.o.nouncing it with her Earth accent, but hed gotten used to it. Liked it even. Not as much as her reaction to his continued tease of her nub.

Despite her squirming plea, he didnt slide himself in. Not yet. Not when he so enjoyed feeling her pleasure as he stroked her faster and faster. How he loved hearing her cries come quicker, more frantic.

Thrusting a finger into her s.e.x caused a shudder to sweep her, one he felt around his penetrating digit.

Tight. So tight. And ready for him. Ready for him to sheath his c.o.c.k and pound.

He could hold off no longer. He guided his c.o.c.k to rub against the mouth of her s.e.x, wetting the swollen tip.

Stop teasing and f.u.c.k me, she demanded, an order he didnt bristle at given she said it with swollen lips and eyes languorous with desire.

He held off, needing to hear something from her. Say you are mine.

Im yours.

All mine.

All yours, she said vehemently as she grabbed at his head and drew him in for a violent kiss.

It proved his undoing. He slammed into her, his throbbing c.o.c.k entering her willing channel in one smooth stroke, which had her clawing at him and crying out.

For a moment, he thought shed come, but while she tensed and her breathing was ragged, she didnt quite crest.

That would change.

He began to pump. In and out, each stroke taking him deeper, filling her, stretching her. The pulsing in her channel, the quivers and moisture of her impending climax, drenched him in sensations.

You are mine. He chanted. His. His. His.

How could he ever have thought he could leave her behind? What foolishness ever led him to believe he could live without her by his side?

His barbarian human was made for him. The greatest treasure ever.

And shes mine.

To seal the revelation, he resorted to a practice of his ancestors. He bit her.

Chapter Thirteen.

Of course I believe in love at first sight. And while your grandpa at the time didnt, he sure changed his mind quick when my daddy caught us in the hayloft. " How Grandma got engaged.