Argurma Monster (The Argurma Chronicles #2)

Chapter 11

Beverly hummed to herself as she lounged on the flight deck nibbling some sort of leathery Argurma dried fruit rope, the stars in the view screen shining the darkness of space all around them. It had taken her a couple of days to get her “space legs” as she called it. The movement of the ship was a lot smoother than any boat she’d ever been on, but there had been a disconcerting element that had made her distinctly queasy at first that hadn’t hit her until halfway through the first day. But now, a couple of weeks later, she felt perfectly comfortable on the ship.

She chuckled quietly to herself as she cast a covert glance at the two males seated on either side of her. She was technically in the command seat, but Zoreth didn’t seem particularly concerned about having her there when it made it easier for him to get the same time at her side as Talech, who insisted on sitting in any empty seat beside her. It was quite the turnaround from her earlier experience of trying to seduce an alien male—badly at that—for a one-way ticket offplanet. Despite being understandably left for dead, she’d somehow managed to effortlessly accomplish her goal and was now the one being pursued.

It offered a new perspective and appreciation for their mating dynamic that she hadn’t been privy to before. Mating was clearly a very serious business for their species, one that she’d come to learn was cherished because of how much difficulty Argurmas had finding compatible mates. Zoreth had been all too happy to spell it out for her during their first meal, his entire bearing suggesting that she should jump for joy because she now had “options.”

Except she hadn’t just fallen off the turnip truck. She’d always had options. The option to not just accept any male who wanted her for his mate. If that weren’t the case, she would have likely been mated and the deed done long before Zoreth had arrived. If it weren’t for her guilt, she would have given in long ago too. She found something alluring about Talech as she had the first time that she met him. Unfortunately, she felt a burgeoning attraction to Zoreth despite the fact that he was a bit of a dick.

She just wasn’t sure what to think of her admirers or how she could ever really choose between them since that was what they were clearly looking for.

Zoreth, from what she’d seen in their brief time together, was cocky and self-assured beyond the point of merely being confident. His features were finer than both the larger Kaylar and Talech. If she had more of his species to compare him against, she might have considered him a “pretty boy” among the Argurmas. He certainly reminded her of a few attractive colleagues she’d had who had pretty much expected women to throw their panties at them if they so much as smiled in invitation at them. At least Zoreth seemed to put some effort into being charming beyond relying on physical appeal. He was also genuinely helpful and considerate. At first, she’d thought that was also just to get into her pants, until she had seen him demonstrate that same helpfulness with Talech when the male seemed confused on how to operate something on the ship.

That he clearly thought himself above Talech in some way rankled, however.

Sure, Talech looked different. He was covered in scars and had obvious prosthetics and augmentations, but the things that made the alien appear more monstrous seemed to make him all the more alluring to her. Especially when his arms and metal limbs surrounded her, holding her tightly to him so that she could feel every groove of his muscles and the thick bulge of a very inhuman package. At times he practically pinned her to him, and it took remarkable self-control not to shiver with pleasure. Of course, all it took was the reminder rising from her subconscious that she was in part responsible for what he suffered to kill the mood.

She’d seen firsthand the toll those changes took on him. Not to mention the difficulties he had to overcome to master himself. He’d struggled with being overwhelmed with sensory information, as well as becoming more accustomed to his extra limbs so that they worked as a true extension of his body rather than leaving them to drag on the ground at his sides when not immediately in use. Those things aside, she didn’t see a whole lot of difference between the males... or not enough. If she were honest, that he still possessed both of his eyes, all of his internal organs, and all of his original limbs surprised her. Especially considering how many invasive procedures his file enumerated, not to mention all the testing of pharmaceuticals and deadly diseases once those experiments were cleared. He could have easily been maimed, though she still had nightmares of watching him writhe on the floor in agony through the monitors when he had been dosed with a live strain of a horrific new virus.

For all of that, however, he was sweet, gentle, and doting. It was at complete odds with what she would have expected from an alien who looked like a monstrous version of his species, one who was clearly highly traumatized. He didn’t speak much, but his behavior and what he did always spoke volumes to her.

His hostility toward Zoreth had also abated over the last couple of days. Although both males still hissed at each other whenever she was sandwiched between them in bed every night, it had lost its vehement edge. She could even detect a subtle teasing in Talech’s demonstrations that made her fight against her urge to smile at his antics. As pleased as she was to see him relaxing around the other male, she didn’t want to exactly encourage antagonizing behavior either, even if Zoreth was taking it more in stride as of late.

That only left her one particular problem: traveling in space was downright boring. She’d been so busy fantasizing about a fast-paced life in a space station somewhere or in an alien city when she’d met Kaylar and Meg that she hadn’t even considered just how boring space travel could be. The fascination with the unending landscape of stars wore off pretty damn fast after the first few days of it when the view seldom changed.

Beverly sighed, and predictably both males looked toward her. The competitive courtship was also a problem. They were both so eager to prove themselves and “provide” for her that, while it was sweet, it had begun to make her feel self-conscious. She couldn’t even shift in her chair to get more comfortable without both of them looking for an opportunity to fetch a cushion or anything else she might need. Who would have thought that being pampered to such a degree would become exhausting?

She gave them both a smile to reassure them that nothing was wrong and that she didn’t need anything before addressing Zoreth with the question on her mind.

“We’ve been traveling nonstop for a while now. How long can this thing run before it needs to be refueled or resupplied?”

Zoreth glanced away, his eyes brightening in a way that told her he was communicating with Garanga’s systems. Finally he blinked and looked over at her again. “We have about two spans of supplies remaining, and the power cells will last double that time. We will refuel the cells when we resupply.”

Two more weeks stuck on a small ship with all this attentiveness? Beverly swallowed back a groan. Wherever they were heading had to be really out of the way if it was going to take that long just to stop and resupply. “Sounds... good. Where are we heading, anyway?”

“We are meeting with the house fleet. Last I heard, they requisitioned a major starship to make it into a mothership to hold the majority of the house of the line. They paid the pirate captain an obscene amount of credits for it. We could have taken it by force, but she is an ally of the leader of the house,” he muttered as he suddenly frowned and keyed something into the station at his elbow.

Beverly chuckled at the way he curled his lip. It was clear that he also admired their pirate ally since he didn’t follow up with any disparaging remarks. An alien house on the run and pirate allies—that at least sounded interesting. A ship large enough to fit what was essentially an entire clan was hard to imagine, however.

“Just how big is this ship?”

Zoreth lifted his head briefly and grinned over at her. “Large enough to hold several of your islands within its belly. Starships are meant to hold crews of several thousand, and even more warriors. It has living facilities, a public meeting area, a cantina. Anything you might need for your daily life and small pleasures is easily provided. It took some cleaning up after being inhabited by pirates for so long and updates to the public and entertainment areas, but last I saw it was quite comfortable.”

Beverly whistled softly to herself. Now that sounded more like it! At her side, Talech clicked his mandibles enthusiastically, and she grinned over at him in agreement.

“And about how long until we get there?”

Zoreth grimaced. “That is hard to say. I am still attempting to establish communication with the mothership. Its last coordinates were a few standard lunars out from our present location.”

Beverly gaped at him. Months?

“Well, fuck,” she sighed.