Bait by Viola Grace Read Free Book Online Page A

Etien stripped to the waist and shifted into a half-form that allowed them to engage in very violent martial combat.
    Aciel came up next to Billie and threaded her arm through the Terran’s. “This is how they work off a good meal.”
    Billie licked her lips as the shifted form of Arcros flipped one of his brothers and sent him skidding for twenty feet before he threw his head back and howled. She cleared her throat, “Yes, I can see how it would help to burn off some excess energy.”
    Images of the night before flickered through her mind, and she tried to squelch them, she really did, but when Arcros turned his head toward her and his nostrils flared rhythmically, she knew that she had dismally failed.
    Oh darn. Here he comes.
     

 
     
     
    Chapter Nine
     
     
    Having a charging Oefric coming at you when you were not carrying a weapon was awkward. Billie pushed Aciel aside and crouched down, the moment that Arcros reached a distance of five feet, she propelled herself up and over his charge.
    She landed flat-footed and made a beeline for his brothers and father. They scattered, but not soon enough. She could feel Arcros’s approach behind her, and when his claws grazed her tunic, she dropped like a stone.
    Her clothing would be stained with grass, but the sound of Arcros thudding into his siblings had her cackling with amusement. Brushing at her clothing, Billie got to her feet and returned to where the women were huddled.
    Aciel was standing next to a grinning Gwen. Her fellow Terran complimented her, “Up and over, very well done.”
    The sounds of fists and feet, growling and clawing gradually dwindled. Billie looked behind her and sighed happily.
    The boys were still busy. They were pinning Arcros down.
    Aciel blinked, “I have never seen a woman do that before.”
    Gwen patted her shoulder. “You can’t say that again. I read Billie’s file. She is perfectly competent at hand-to-hand combat and rarely gets caught by her attacker.”
    Aciel defended her son, “He wasn’t attacking her.”
    Billie grinned. “No, he was going to haul me back to his house for the night, and he knew that it wouldn’t make you very happy. I simply acted to keep everyone on a quiet and respectable keel.”
    The women within earshot laughed and applauded lightly.
    They took a seat on folding chairs and watched the men resume their exercise. It seemed that when Billie calmed down, so did Arcros.
    She enjoyed talking with the ladies. After they finished discussing her defense techniques, they spoke about the clothing that she had ordered. And in an hour, the men were exhausted and back in their daily forms.
    As they approached, Aciel smiled, “Your turn to do the dishes.”
    Coros nodded and walked toward the interior of the house. His sons followed with the exception of Arcros.
    Billie smiled as Arcros crooked his finger at her, his lips twisted in a smirk. “That was a charming display of technique, Billie.”
    “Thank you, Arcros.” She gave him a bow, and the instant that she straightened, she was in his arms.
    Images of her pale skin under his hands filled her thoughts. He kissed her as he filled her head with memories of his body on hers, inside hers.
    When he raised his head, she was trembling and her body ached restlessly. Her lips throbbed from his kiss, and he seemed satisfied with whatever he saw in her eyes.
    “It was unorthodox but a good call. My mother would not forgive me if I ruined her plans.”
    “It is the same all over the universe. The ceremony is for the parents, the children simply want to be with the one they have chosen.”
    “Now that she has agreed to you, there is nothing to hold her back. Once we are together, there will be nothing to hold me back, and if you think you can dodge me again, you are woefully mistaken.” He reached out and slapped her ass before joining the others inside.
    With his threat ringing in her ears, she turned back to see Etien and Gwen standing and talking quietly to