“I want you.” She chewed on her lower lip again.

The gesture was something he noticed she had done more than a few times and mentally made note of. It was a way to read her emotions when she felt uncertain of a situation.

“I’m not convinced.” He hated admitting that. At this point he was willing to overlook almost anything to ease the pain in his groin. His dick was engorged and trapped in an awkward position inside his pants. Before this moment, he would have just taken the female in front of him at her word, but Jeanie was different. She didn’t know that once he started, nothing would stop him from owning her in every way possible. He was strong willed but not when it came to her.

His desire for her overwhelmed him, causing a dose of fear to course through him. His instincts would take over at the first taste. He fought the haze of lust, reminding himself what would happen if he couldn’t stop if she asked. Surprisingly, the core demand to protect her from anything, even himself, helped dull the pounding need to pounce.

“I’ve never done this before. That’s why I’m nervous but I do want you, True. I swear.”

“You’ve never shared sex?” He stumbled back in horror, nearly tripping over his own feet. That would explain how she’d been certain her body hadn’t been used in actual breeding experiments. She’d said she hadn’t dated for a long time before being given the drug. Humans weren’t as straightforward about sexuality as Species. He’d been told it caused a female pain the first time a male mounted her. Jeanie would bleed and probably shed lots of tears. His dick softened. He couldn’t do that to her. He wouldn’t.

“I have.” Her gaze dropped.

“You’re lying.”

She looked back at him. “I’m not a virgin. I meant I haven’t ever been in this situation before.” She reached out to him again. “But I want to be because I’m with you.”

True knew he should turn around and leave the bedroom. The two of them sharing sex was a bad idea. He just couldn’t resist her. His feet didn’t move away from her but instead he drew closer. “It’s because I’m Species,” he guessed.

“No. That doesn’t matter to me. I’ve never had sex with a guy unless we had a long-term relationship first. You know, gone on a lot of dates and spent a few months of getting to know everything about each other first.”

Unanswered questions bombarded him. Why would she make an exception for him if she needed to spend that kind of time with a male before sharing sex? Was it a human requirement? He decided to wait on figuring out that mystery. Jeanie was willing and in his bed. That was the bottom line.

He stopped by the edge of the bed and gently took her offered hand. She was soft and delicate. Her scent filled his nose, making him hard all over again. He didn’t want to talk anymore but they needed to exchange a few more words. He forced himself to speak as he stared deeply into her eyes.

“I make noises humans don’t but I’ll be gentle and go slow.” He already knew it was going to be the toughest thing he’d ever done. It was difficult to use the head on his shoulders when the lower one demanded freedom from his pants but it was important Jeanie didn’t become frightened by the unexpected. “I’ll even mount you facing me. I know humans enjoy eye contact. I’ve seen a few videos with humans sharing sex and I’ll try to do what they would.”

Jeanie reached up with her free hand and gripped his shoulder. She used it to pull herself to her feet and stand on his bed. True lifted his chin to continue looking into her eyes. She jerked slightly on their clasped hands and he released hers.

The feel of her fingers caressing both sides of his jawline was heaven when she did it. Her touch was featherlight and hesitant but felt amazing. She leaned in closer, her focus on his lips. “Now you’re the nervous one babbling. I’m not afraid and I know exactly what you are, True. Forget whatever you’ve seen humans do in videos. I hate those things and they rarely show anything I’d want done to me. I won’t mind you being more gentle than normal though. You’re really strong and I already have enough bruises.”

The reminder that she’d been shot broke the last of his restraint. She could have died and he’d never have been able to touch her the way he’d always wanted. He growled, wrapped his arms around her back with care, and tugged her closer. Her breasts crushed against his chest wasn’t nearly enough with the cotton shirt blocking him from skin-to-skin contact. He lifted her, stepped away from the bed until she no longer stood on it, and slowly crouched until her feet touched the floor.

She’d given him permission to ignore all he’d learned about human sex. He had planned to kiss her mouth but those weren’t the lips he wanted to taste the most. He decided that would come later. He leaned forward, careful of the injury to her lower stomach when he pushed against her rib cage instead. The gentle nudge was enough to send her off balance when her thighs came into contact with the edge of the mattress. She lay back. The soft bed cushioned her.

True wrapped his fingers around her knees, spreading them apart at the same time that he lifted her legs high enough to be in the position he wanted. The shirt had ridden up to her belly, baring her completely from the waist down, giving him a clear view of her sex, which he had been fantasizing about.

The small, closely cropped strip of hair running along the top of her mons and down the sides of her labia, forming a pattern, was intriguing. She’d removed most of the other hair, not that he cared to ask how it had been done at the moment. He’d read that some humans used razors, while some had their bodies waxed to remove unwanted body hair.

He pushed her thighs wider apart despite seeing her tense but she didn’t struggle or protest. He glanced up to find her staring at him with wide eyes, her lips parted. He grinned, knowing he’d surprised her. He returned his focus to her pussy.

She looked little in that area. Part of him had hoped she’d be bigger somehow but the slit of her sex didn’t seem as though it would accommodate the thickness of his dick. He studied her anatomy, knowing females were designed to stretch around males but it seemed doubtful she could.

“True?”

She sounded a little frightened. He could relate since he had broken out in a cold sweat of anxiety from the fear he’d either hurt her or he just wouldn’t fit inside when it came time to mount Jeanie. He bent forward to distract her. She was a little wet, the proof of her arousal not only teasing his nose but taunting his dick as well.

Humans like words. He bit back a snarl, frustrated he’d almost forgotten that part. He salivated to get his mouth buried between her thighs to coat his tongue with the taste of Jeanie but her emotional needs had to be met. He forced his gaze up to find hers.

“You’re so beautiful to me. So delicate and such a sexy pink,” he rasped, surprised at how much he meant the words once they were said. “Your scent makes me so hard.”

He inwardly winced at his crude tone but it couldn’t be helped. It was a miracle he could even think at all or keep a shred of humanity when his instincts urged him to lick her until she cried out his name after he forced her to come as fast as possible. The result would leave her pussy soaked and prepared for him to flip her over, bent across the mattress, and mount her. Just imagining what it would feel like to rub the crown of his dick against her hot, wet pussy was enough to make him want to tear open the front of his pants instead of bothering to unfasten the snaps.

“Are you okay?” Her voice trembled and he saw uncertainty flash in her eyes.

He didn’t want to alarm her by sharing how close he felt to losing his mind. He’d never wanted a female that much in his life. He might have when he’d been given breeding drugs but that wasn’t the cause of what was happening to him now. Jeanie seemed to naturally affect him in a similar manner.