Close Liaisons (The Krinar Chronicles 1)

Mia buried her head in the pillow while waiting for his return, desperately thinking of ways to get the information over to John quickly. She still needed to write her papers, so maybe she could tell Korum she had to get some books from the library.

He was back a minute later, carrying the familiar device that had “shined” her and something else that she’d never seen before. The second object looked most like a lipstick tube, but was made of some strange material.

“Um, I’m all right – really, there’s no need for this,” said Mia quickly, not wanting him to plant any additional tracking devices on her. For all she knew, the next batch of nanotechnology in her body might broadcast her every thought to him, and that was the last thing she wanted.

“There’s every need,” he said, obviously surprised at her reluctance. “You’re hurt, and I can fix it. Why not?”

Why not indeed. She didn’t have a good answer for that, and protesting further would make him suspicious. Getting caught so close to the end of her mission would be stupid, and it’s not like she didn’t already have the tracking devices embedded in her palms. What’s a few more?

So she just shrugged her shoulders in response, letting him do as he wanted.

He activated the “shining” device and ran the warm red light over her bruises. Seeing it work the second time was still incredible, with the marks on her skin disappearing as though they were never there. He was very thorough, inspecting every inch of her skin, and Mia blushed slightly at having so much attention paid to her naked body in broad daylight. Once he was done, he took the tube-like device in his hand and brought it toward her thighs.

“What are you going to do with that?” she asked suspiciously, eyeing it with distrust. There was only one place remaining on her body that still hadn’t been healed, and the red light from the device could not reach there. She hoped the little tube wasn’t really going where it looked like it could go.

Korum sighed and said, “It’s

something we use for deep internal damage, when you have to heal various organs before you can mend the outer layer of the skin. I know it’s overkill for what you’ve got, but it’s the only thing I have in this apartment that can reach inside you to help you with the soreness.”

So it was going there. Mia’s blush got worse. The thing was about the size of a tampon, and the thought of having something medical like that inserted in broad daylight was embarrassing.

“Seriously?” he asked with incredulity. “After last night, you’re going to blush at this?”

Mia refused to look at him. “Just do it already,” she mumbled, plopping down and hiding her face in the pillow.

He laughed softly and did as she requested, sliding the little device inside her sore and swollen opening. It went in easily, and Mia didn’t feel anything for a few seconds until the tingling began.

“It feels funny,” she complained, still shielded by the pillow.

“It’s supposed to – that means it’s working.”

The tingling went on for a couple of minutes and then it stopped. She didn’t feel sore anymore, which was nice, although the feel of the foreign object in her vagina was disconcerting.

“It should be done by now,” said Korum, reaching inside her with his long fingers and pulling out the tube. “That’s it – all finished. You can stop hiding now.”

“Okay, thanks,” muttered Mia, still refusing to meet his eyes. “I think I’m going to shower now.”

He laughed and kissed her exposed shoulder. “Go for it. I have some things to take care of, so I’ll be out the rest of the day. The dinner will probably be a late one, so be sure to grab a good lunch.”

And then he walked out of the room, finally leaving Mia alone to carry out the rest of the plan.

Chapter 18

As soon as Korum left, Mia sprang into action, her heart pounding at the magnitude of what she was about to do.

Before hopping into the shower, she sent a quick ‘Hi’ email to Jessie, letting her know that she would be stopping by the apartment today and asking how Jessie’s Anatomy final had gone. Hopefully, John would see the email and contact Mia quickly. It was already early afternoon; due to her complete exhaustion, Mia had slept far later than planned, and there was a lot to get done before this evening.

Korum had thoughtfully left her a sandwich for lunch, and Mia gratefully gobbled it down before heading out the door. When he did things like that – considerate little gestures – she could almost believe that he genuinely cared about her, and she would feel an unwelcome pang of guilt at betraying his trust. Even today, after everything that happened last evening, the thought of him coming to any harm made her feel sick. It was ridiculous, of course; he would most likely be fine – and even if he wasn’t, it was his own fault for invading Earth and trying to enslave her species. Still, she would much rather see him safely deported back to Krina, so she could resume her normal life knowing that he was thousands of light years away and would never bother her again.

Or so she told herself.

Deep inside, some silly romantic part of her wanted to cry at the thought of never seeing Korum again – never feeling his touch or hearing his laughter, never glimpsing the dimple that so incongruously graced his left cheek. He was her enemy, but he was also her lover, and she had gotten attached to him despite everything. The pleasure that he gave her went beyond the sexual; just being with him made her feel excited and alive, and – if she ever let herself forget the exact nature of their relationship – oddly happy.

She could not imagine having sex with someone else after experiencing Korum’s lovemaking. It would be like eating sawdust for the rest of her life after first tasting ambrosia. It made perfect sense that he would be a good lover, of course; aside from whatever special chemistry he said they had together, Korum was also thousands of years old – and had had plenty of time to learn exactly how to please a woman. How could a human man compare to that? And she didn’t even want to think about how he made her feel when he took her blood. She wasn’t sure that it was healthy, to feel a pleasure so intense, but the thought of never experiencing it again was nearly more than she could bear.

For the first time, she wondered about the xenos she’d heard about before. The motives of these people – who supposedly advertised online with the goal of entering into sexual relations with the Krinar – had always been a mystery to her. But she wondered now if they were perhaps truly addicted . . . if they’d had a taste of paradise and knew that everything else would pale in comparison. Korum had warned that addiction was a possibility for both of them if he took her blood too frequently. Mia shuddered at the thought. That was the last thing she needed – to actually develop a physical need for him. It was enough that she would probably miss him with every fiber of her being when he was finally gone from her life; the last thing she needed was to crave some elusive high that she could only achieve with him.

There was no other alternative for her; she had to complete the mission. Their relationship was bound to end – it was just a matter of time. Even if she were willing to put up with his autocratic nature – or if she even went so far as to accept being his charl – he would tire of her in a few short years and then she would be alone anyway, completely heartbroken and devastated at his desertion.