The Naked Truth by Lily Cain Read Free Book Online

When he realized that she was moving under his hands, leaning into the pressure of his palms, he nearly groaned aloud.
    After a few moments she glanced back at him. Her eyes were solemn, and his heart stirred as he realized that despite his efforts, she could not imagine herself as anywhere other than still deep in trouble—her future, perhaps even her life in jeopardy. Sensual she might be, but her mind moved in complex patterns.
    He took a chance, lowered his mouth again to hers. In the contact of m’ittar, desire became reality. Their lips touched, his questioning, hers answering. He parted her mouth with his tongue, tasted her as he’d wanted to since she’d been healed.
    She rolled to one side. Her arms returned his embrace, stroked his back. The soft lines of his L’inar markings across his torso stiffened into ridges as she stroked him, unknowing what her actions were suggesting to him. He groaned with desire as her hands explored, but released her when she broke the embrace.
     
     
    His kiss, so gentle, and so sensual was a marvelous distraction. He didn’t pressure her. For a few minutes she forgot where she was, and why she was there. More importantly she forgot what had happened before, or at least she could pretend to forget. There was something in his intense green eyes, something…honest. He’s delicious. Admitting to herself that she wanted him was easy enough in this unreal alien place. He’s…beautiful.
    Sue stood and faced the lapping waves of an alien ocean. She heard the soft rustle of sand as he stood as well and imagined the way his eyes would be watching her. Would they be filled with pity?
    All her adult life had been spent in the military. She’d fought for every advancement and never shown a moment’s hesitation to stand up for herself or her brothers-in-arms. She was tough, never needing all the mushy emotional crap she saw in the vids. It wasn’t for her. If she wanted a man, she took him or let him take her, but never worried about intimacy. And if that was sometimes a lonely existence, well, that was what life had in store for her. Sex was sex.
    But sex with this man, this alien, wasn’t going to be that easy. She could feel it. He was nearly the opposite of every man she’d ever been with, the way he seemed to consider every action, never jumping right in like she would have. If she followed her hormones this time, it would be complicated.
    “Between Inarrii, sensuality is an experience that offers comfort. Forgive me if I have taken this too far.” His mental voice rumbled with what she thought might be restrained passion but also carried the weight of complete sincerity.
    She turned back to him. There was no pity in his expression. He honestly wanted to soothe her, make her relax enough to find the strength to face the past.
    She made a choice, and stepped in to kiss him again. She’d never shared more than the hot sweaty motions of sex, but this time she wanted more. He was offering her a tenderness that seemed to chase away the dark, that made her remember herself as her body pushed for more. The more she desired him, the more she felt like herself.
    He hesitated. Was her kiss tainted with her desperation to forget? Or perhaps he sensed the culmination of a lifetime of loneliness. But as she ran her hands over his forearms, he shuddered and met her lips again.
    The preliminary reports on the Inarrii, and her former superior’s comments were correct. The markings over most of Kiis’s body were not tattoos, they were something else. The more she touched them, the firmer they got, forming ridges that rose above his skin. In some places only a few millimeters, and in others nearly an inch.
    She ran her fingers over the ridges and looked up in time to see his eyes dilate. He liked it—no, she was pretty sure he loved it. She stepped deeper into the embrace, reached around him to stroke the ridges on his neck. She slid her hands under the edge of his robes, traced the lines as