Dra’vik frowned—did that mean their room was on the two-thousandth floor? If so, The Grand Lix’Dorios might rival the Sky Palaces of Hex’or Six in his own ‘verse.
“There—you see, the hotel is marked on the map. It’s just off one of the main exits of the undertram—our excellent public transportation system,” Ostensio said proudly. “So you can get there quickly and if you want to do a little sightseeing and explore the city, you have only to walk a block or two and hop back on the undertram to get where you need to go.”
“All right, thank you,” Dra’vik said dryly, though he very much doubted that he and Iyanna would want to do any sightseeing.
He could tell from her demeanor that what the little Elite wanted more than anything was to just finish this mission and get the Seven Frozen Hells off this misogynistic planet. But he supposed it had been thoughtful of the other male to get them a place so centrally located.
“Yes, thank you,” Iyanna echoed.
“Er, you’re very welcome.” Ostensio nodded at her uncomfortably, as though he wasn’t used to speaking to females or having them speak to him. Most likely he wasn’t, since they were a whole different class here, Dra’vik thought, frowning. A much lower class according to the Lix’dorian males. Assholes.
“I’ll see you both tonight. As I said, I’ll send a hovercar for you at eight. Just be in the lobby of The Grand Lix’Dorios and the driver will come in for you,” the Minister said. “And now, I really must be going! You can find the entrance to the undertram at the end of the spaceport,” he added, and then he left the room as quickly as he had entered it.
Dra’vik looked at Iyanna to see if she was upset, but the expression on her face was calm enough.
“You’re sure about tonight?” he asked her once more.
She nodded.
“I’m sure. But as soon as we have the plants we need, let’s get the hell out of here. We haven’t even been here two hours and I’ve already had enough of this nasty-ass planet.”
“I couldn’t agree more, little girl,” Dra’vik growled.
He just hoped he could get off Lix’dor Prime without killing anyone else or burning anything to a crisp.
THIRTY
It took Iyanna a minute before she could nerve herself up to take off Dra’vik’s vest and give it back to him. When she did, he looked at her in surprise.
“You want to go out in public uncovered, little girl?” he asked. “I mean, I know you don’t have a choice about tonight but—”
“I don’t have a choice about this either. You heard what the Minister of Botany said,” Iyanna told him. “If I go out there wearing your vest and trying to hide my girly parts, I’ll be arrested of indecent non-exposure.”
She shook her head. Damn, this was a fucked-up planet!
Dra’vik seemed to agree because she heard him muttering,
“Fucking Lix’dorian assholes,” under his breath as he put back on the vest. He looked up from buttoning the gold buttons and caught her eye. “Ready?”
“Ready.” Iyanna held out a hand and he took it, enfolding her fingers in his much longer, stronger ones. They left the lounge together and went back out into the spaceport.
Immediately, Iyanna noticed how much more crowded it seemed. There were all kinds of people everywhere, walking up and down the echoing white corridors.
She felt terribly exposed, the chilly air of the spaceport making her bare nipples tight and blowing through the triangular cut outs over her ass and pussy. It felt like everyone was looking at her, though she knew that probably wasn’t true. After all, she was hardly the only woman dressed like this. But seeing lots of other exposed females didn’t make it any easier to be exposed herself.
“Fuck—must be rush hour,” Dra’vik remarked, frowning at the crowd.
“I guess so,” Iyanna answered in a tight voice. She squeezed the big Drake’s hand, feeling like a little kid asking for reassurance, but unable to help herself. It wasn’t that she minded crowds, but she didn’t usually go out in them half naked!
“Hey, little girl, you all right?” Dra’vik shot her a worried glance from his great height.
“I will be as long as you stick by my side like glue,” Iyanna told him. She couldn’t help thinking that any one of the Lix’dorian men she saw passing by would be more than happy to try and take advantage of her vulnerable position if the big Drake wasn’t with her.
“Don’t worry about that—I won’t be leaving you again. Not for any reason,” he growled reassuringly. “You ready to go? I think the end of the spaceport must be that way.”
He pointed and Iyanna nodded.
“Let’s go.”
As they walked, she saw plenty of aliens from other planets, but many more native Lix’dorians. Often they were in couples—a male with his cherished wife or a male and his pleasure slave female. These last couples especially caught her eye because many of them were doing things that would not have been acceptable in public back on Earth.