Even though it’s impossible to make out much, my gut tells me something isn’t right. Vultos whines louder this time and the dark shape in the snow moves. It’s a soft, pained sound that cuts straight through me. Within seconds I’m moving forward, grabbing the small, cold bundle. Black hair spills from a hood when I pull her onto my lap. Suddenly I’m staring down at a young, delicate, female face with lips tinted blue from the cold and patches of snow crusted to her skin.
Vultos cries louder this time, snapping me from my state of inaction.
“You’re right, boy, let’s get her on your back and against your fur. She needs warmth…quickly.”
I lift her in my arms but can’t summon the strength to let her go. Instead, Vultos crouches down so I can mount him again while still holding the female tightly in my arms. Her pulse is strong though she’s unconscious, her skin cold to the touch. While I wait for the other two to return I wrap her in one of my extra furs while never letting go of her.
If this is how Chorlo decided to deliver the first female, we’re going to have words. She would’ve died out here if left overnight on her own. His carelessness will be dealt with. I knew better than to trust him in the first place.
The small female groans as she’s jostled about while I work to keep her covered and warm. Vultos begins to pace while we wait for Dhacar and Vrihith to return so we can make haste back to the warmth of the caves.
They’re never going to believe what we found.
My eyes are constantly drawn to her. She’s petite in my arms, looking especially fragile in her current condition. She has thick, black eyelashes crusted with ice and a small nose that is a harsh shade of red from the cold. Even still, she’s solid when I hold her and I have the inappropriate desire to see the rest of her body out of all of these clothes.
I can’t help it—it’s instinct.
And because of the situation with our clan I’ve never seen a naked female, let alone mated with one. None of my clan brothers have either. The few females we have left are the wise women and their mates have long ago passed.
She is the answer to so many of our problems.
I hate everyone but her.
Zuvath
It has been a year since the second transport of humans arrived and trust is in short supply. They keep to the settlement, determined to create their own community without the untrustworthy aliens who got them into this mess. All of them except for Ellen. She breaks the rules for me—sneaking out to hunt together, riding our komoth and even hiding away in secret caves where she lets me touch her secret places.
I want her but no one knows what we get up to when we’re alone. If we were discovered, it could ruin the fragile peace between our kind.
Ellen
I’ve always been a people pleaser and that personality trait extends to Xavren. The barbarians are my friends but so are the humans. They rely on me. They count on my leadership. If I mated with a barbarian, they would see it as the ultimate betrayal to what we’ve accomplished and what we’re striving toward.
Zuvath has taught me how to survive here. Always the brooding grump, he’s different with me—correcting my bow form when we hunt, watching me closer than he needs to, saving the best pieces of meat for me. Somehow he’s become more important to me than anyone else…and I can’t tell a soul about it.
When we stumble on a foolish plan by the humans, we’ll use our strong bond to try to prevent disaster.
Brutal alien is book four in the Barbarians of Xavren Series. It is a steamy sci-fi romance, no cheating, no cliffhanger, HEA guaranteed! It can be read as a standalone.
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Sounds like a great series.
ReplyDeleteintriguing
ReplyDeletethos are some very cool looking covers.
ReplyDeleteThe book looks exciting. Love the cover!
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