Page 35 of Stone Cold Alien

“Rest,” I whispered, praying to the gods that this was only the first of many nights we’d spend side by side.

Chapter 7

Robyn

Iwoke beneath a wing.

For a few confused seconds, I couldn’t remember where I was or why something heavy and warm covered most of my body. Then Sten moved behind me and his tail tightened around my thigh.

Memories returned all at once. The castle. The blood. Dinner. Sharing a bed with an alien gargoyle I had met less than a day ago.

Kissing him. There’d been a lot of kissing.

Sten’s chest was pressed against my back. One arm rested across my stomach while his good wing curved over me, blocking the morning light coming through the curtains.

Something hard pressed against my bum.

Very hard.

My body reacted despite my best efforts to ignore it.

“You are awake,” Sten said quietly.

“Have you been watching me sleep?”

“I could not see you. My wing was in the way.”

“You know exactly what I mean.”

He moved his wing, letting pale light into the space around us. His golden eyes were already open.

“I have been awake for a while.”

“And staring at the back of your wing?”

“I was listening to you breathe.”

That should have sounded creepy. Instead, warmth spread through my chest.

His hand remained on my stomach. “Would you like me to get up?”

I should have said yes. We had got carried away last night, and waking wrapped around each other wasn’t going to help me think clearly.

“Not yet.”

His arm tightened slightly.

I relaxed against him, which brought my bum more firmly against his erection. Sten inhaled sharply.

Neither of us mentioned it.

“How is your wing?” I asked, always the nurse.

“Better. Almost back to normal.”

I turned carefully within his hold. His tail loosened enough to let me move, then settled around my leg again once I faced him. I could get used to this.

His injured wing rested on the pillows behind him. The swelling had gone down overnight, and he no longer held the joint at an awkward angle. I knew nothing about wings, but I did recognise a patient who was moving in a rejuvenated, relieved way.