Total pages in book: 32
Estimated words: 29593 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 148(@200wpm)___ 118(@250wpm)___ 99(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 29593 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 148(@200wpm)___ 118(@250wpm)___ 99(@300wpm)
“Five years. It wasn’t a prison planet, at least. I’ve heard those places are nightmares. I was sent to a penal colony planet with a bunch of other younger delinquents, and we did a lot of hard labor. I was offered a construction job when I got out, as long as I kept out of trouble, and I’ve been doing construction jobs ever since then.” He shrugs. “It’s about the best kind of job a male like me can expect.”
“What do you mean, a male like you? You’re one of the big blue guys that run everything, right?” I wave a hand at our surroundings. “This planet, all the space stations, you name it. If anyone has an advantage, it’s you guys.”
His jaw juts, and he looks rather mutinous. “My bloodline isn’t clean. My family name isn’t, either.”
I take a sip of my beer. “So what kind of alien are you if you’re not fully blue dude?”
Brux is quiet for a moment, as if he’s not sure he wants to admit it. “Moden. My father’s father was a splice. If you know anything about mesakkah, they value good bloodlines.”
“And a splice is bad, I take it.”
“A lab-created monstrosity.” He gestures at his face. “It’s why I look like this.”
“Devilishly handsome?” I tease. “And if you’re trying to scare me off by telling me how terrible your family history is, it won’t work. A lot of humans think breeding to keep bloodlines clean is disgusting…and those that do usually end up with buck teeth. If you don’t bring in fresh blood, you make the entire line weaker.”
I mean, the breeding I’m thinking of is purebred dogs and people with Habsburg jaws, but it’s the same thing, right?
Brux takes a big gulp of his beer and I notice he’s not touching the food. Leaving it for me? Or just going to ditch me quickly for a real meal later?
“You sure do make a lot of excuses for me,” he finally says, setting his beer down.
“I’m a big fan of yours. It means I will absolutely make up a thousand excuses as to why I think you’re awesome.” I take a fried leaf and then push the basket of food toward him. “Are you not hungry?”
He pauses. “Are you sure you want to spend time with me? Someone is bound to notice and say something.”
What, that I’m slumming? He really doesn’t have a high opinion of himself. He’s spent the last few moments going into great detail about how terrible he is, as if he’s going to somehow convince me to change my mind. “If anyone asks, I’ll tell them you have a tongue that could lick out a sonata on a piano. They’ll understand.”
I could swear he blushes under that blue-gray hide of his. It’s perplexing. It’s even more perplexing when he mutters, “I don’t have a particularly skilled tongue.”
I push the leaves toward him again and then study his expression, trying to figure him out. “Do women just not hit on you, Brux? Because every time I compliment you, you get this constipated look on your face and then you tell me about how terrible of a choice you are.”
He scowls, nudging the basket back toward me as if we’re playing tennis and it’s my serve. “I just don’t want you mistaken on anything.”
“On liking you?”
“On what kind of person I am.” Brux stares down at me, his face hard as if he’s preparing for war. “I’m still not entirely sure you’re not pranking me.”
Pranking him? Pranking him? Here I’ve been fighting hard to try and show him my interest at every turn and he still hasn’t caught on? I slip my shoe off under the table and slide my foot up his leg and between his thighs. “Do I need to crawl under this table and give you a blow job to show you how I feel about you? Or is this helping things become clearer?”
His eyes narrow at me but he doesn’t push my foot away. I rub the heel of my foot directly where his cock is, and underneath my sole, he hardens. I give him another sweet smile.
“I like you,” I remind him. “I’ve liked you for five years. If I’m being aggressive, it’s because I like you and I want to make sure you know it. That way if you ditch me again, I’ll know I’ve tried everything I could possibly do to show you my interest.”
“I didn’t ditch you before.”
“Sure felt like it.”
“I took advantage of you in a weak moment. I made sure you were safe and then I got out of your life. It was for the best.”
“Was it? Because you didn’t ask me how I felt.”
He runs a hand down his face, scrubbing it. The cock I’m currently wiggling my toes against is nice and hard. “I bought you from your owner because he was a piece of keffing shit. Didn’t know what to do with you once I had you, and then after….” His throat works and his gaze skims away from my face. “After, I thought it would be best for you to go with Lord va’Rin.”