I shake my head. “I’m not the being you want. I won’t make a good mate.”
“Veck that,” Jax says immediately. “You’re ours.”
I take a step back and my ass hits the wall. The three of them advance on me. “Y-you don’t even know me. You don’t know anything about me.” I hate how much higher my voice sounds.
“I know you.” It’s Tarren who speaks this time, even though he’s usually the silent one. “I know you’re brave and stubborn.”
I’m stunned momentarily by this observation. They’re the last words I expected from his mouth.
“I know you’re sensitive, despite your tough act. You care deeply for the beings around you, regardless of their species. You risked your life to save others during the battle.”
My breath stalls in my chest. Tarren’s gaze locks on mine and he pins me with it, right to the wall. He takes a step closer.
“So did you.” My voice is hoarse.
My whole life I’ve been a barcode. I had human friends, yes, but I’ve never been seen as anything but a commodity.
I thought that’s how Tarren and his cousins saw me, too.
Tarren lowers his voice and dips his head, bringing his sensual lips toward me until they hover just a whisper from my temple. “I know you blush when you think about me claiming you.”
My panties dampen, pussy clenching at his words—at the heat of his skin, so close to mine. “I know the way your ass fills my palms.”
I bite my lips to keep in the gasp. My buttocks clench, as if to remind me of how it felt to have him cupping my cheeks.
“I know the scent of your arousal.” His gaze trails down to my breasts, where my nipples protrude through the fabric of my tunic. “I smell it now.”
I can’t hold back the tiny whimper that escapes my lips. I squeeze my quaking thighs together to alleviate the throb of my clit.
Ronan drags the hem of my tunic up slowly, as if I won’t notice. When I try to bat his hand away, he just grins. It’s an impish smile, one that puts me at ease, despite the audacity of his movements. “I just have to see your panties.” He winks. “Just a peek, Riya?”
My face heats. I try to push his hand back down, but I can’t stop the laugh in my throat. Stars, I never thought in a million years I’d giggle with a male over baring me.
The other two also grin—tentative smiles, like they’re not sure if it’s safe to relax yet.
“Come on Riya,” Jax joins in, turning the full force of his persuasive charm on me. “Make our planet rotation. Show us the panties.”
I must flush a deeper red, because my face feels like it’s on fire. In fact, I cover my own eyes with my hand and surrender to their perusal.
A large hand drapes over mine, blocking all the light out. “Let me do that.” It’s Tarren.
One of them whistles—Jax, I think.
“Female, if you had any idea how badly we want to rip that scrap of fabric off your body and worship between those legs, you’d be covering more than your eyes right now.” Jax’s voice sounds deeper.
I want to pull my tunic down, but Tarren holds my hand firmly over my eyes, and Ronan still has the other captive.
“Give me this one,” Tarren says softly and Jax transfers my wrist to Tarren’s keeping. He adds it to the pile covering my eyes. “Don’t move, Riya,” he murmurs near my ear. His voice is gravelly. “Ronan’s going to take a closer look.”
I jerk when heat suddenly engulfs my panty-clad pussy, like Ronan’s mouthing it through the fabric. There’s a nip of teeth and more moist heat.
I squirm, unsure whether I’m trying to get away or get more.
“Do you want him to make you feel good, Riya?” That’s Jax’s voice, I think.
My head bobs around, the movement neither a nod nor a shake.
One of them thrums my nipples through my tunic. They’re stiffer than Zandian crystal. “She wants it.”