Patrolling the Stars (Leaving Triad Series Book 2) Read online

  Carolina took her panties off while he was still moving to see what she was doing. By the time he was sitting up, she was straddling him again. She grabbed his cock in a bold move, lined it up with her entrance, and slowly sank down on it.

  *****

  “Fuck!” Drako moaned as she slid down on his cock. He never thought she would be that bold, but her sudden desire and daring was intoxicating to him. Her pussy felt so good wrapped around his dick. He grabbed her hips and started making her move up and down on his cock even more. Fuck, he was going to come too soon.

  He kissed her neck, nipping and licking the smooth skin. The sight of her breasts bouncing up and down so close to his face was the most beautiful thing Drako had ever seen. A moan escaped as he felt the tightening begin in his lower spine. Shit, he was too close already. Drako started rubbing her bud of nerves as he took a nipple back into his mouth. He could feel her tightening around his cock, and quickly stood up, holding onto her as he walked around to the back of the couch before setting her on it. He started pounding his dick into her as he held onto her ass to keep her from falling, getting a much deeper penetration.

  *****

  Carolina ran her hands up his chest, holding onto his neck as she moved to kiss him. She loved the way he took control, while making her feel completely safe and at ease. She loved the moans he made, and witnessing the effect that she had on him. Looking into his eyes, Carolina realized something — she loved him.

  She felt herself getting lightheaded; she wasn’t going to last much longer. He thrust himself into her a few more times, driving her over the edge of the galaxy and back again.

  “God, Drako!” she moaned as she felt his cock throbbing inside of her. He kissed her lips as he took her off the back of the couch, swiftly setting her down on the floor.

  She went to put her clothes back on, but Drako reached out to make her stop. “Stay with me again tonight.”

  “Alright,” she answered with a loving smile.

  Drako scooped her up into his arms and kissed her lips tenderly as he carried her into the bedroom with him. He laid her on the bed and climbed on next to her, pulling her against his warm body. The way she felt in his arms, Carolina knew she loved him in a way that she’d never loved a man before, but what was she going to do about it? He was supposed to leave soon.

  *****

  Carolina rushed home after she woke up. She felt terrible; she was supposed to be there for Mary when the legal advisor showed up, but the appointment had started over a half hour ago. She ran to her suite quickly, feeling like the worst friend in the world. Carolina barged through the doors to see Mary consumed with tears as the legal advisor apologized to her.

  “What did you do?” Carolina yelled at him, outraged at her friend being so hurt.

  “I just told her what her husband’s legal advisor said,” the legal advisor answered.

  “What did he say?”

  The advisor went on for the better half of an hour, trying to explain a lot of things neither of them understood, until finally he got to the part that had made Mary so upset.

  “He signed the paper and requested full custody of the child. If she declines, then Melanie will still have to travel back and forth between the parents’ ships, until the court makes a decision. The court will issue an investigation of her home to make sure that the child is being properly cared for.”

  “He abandoned them on a doomed planet with no hope of survival! Why is there even any question as to who is the better parent?” Carolina said, raising her voice.

  “I know, and I understand that. I’m doing my best to fight his legal advisor’s moves. Mr. Carter has claimed that he was going to send them money to get both of them off the planet safely as soon as he had the chance.”

  “Do you honestly believe that for a second?”

  “I don’t, but it doesn’t matter what I believe. The court has to hear his plea,” the legal advisor answered.

  “This is bullshit,” Carolina said.

  “Do you live here too, ma’am?”

  “Yes. Why does that matter?”

  “The court will want to know the people Melanie will be living around,” he answered as he closed his suitcase. “Once we get a visiting schedule picked out for Melanie, I’ll be back. Is she in school?”

  “Yes, that’s where she’s at now,” Mary answered, trying to hold back her sobs long enough to speak.

  “I’ll need to come back with the social worker the court appoints to interview her. The social worker will inspect the dwelling. My suggestion is to make sure everything is clean and orderly, and try answer the social worker’s questions politely without giving her too much information.” He turned to leave.

  Drako stood in the doorway, and the little human male looked frightened as he tried to sneak past him. “Who was that?”

  “My legal advisor,” Mary answered.

  “I take it you received bad news.” Drako looked at Mary with concern.

  Carolina walked over to Mary and started rubbing her back in an attempt to comfort her. Drako walked in and closed the door behind him. When Carolina rushed to leave his bed, he’d thought it was to meet with one of her clients. He hated that he was still jealous over her job, but he couldn’t help it. He didn’t want to share her.

  Carolina texted Thesos without letting Mary know. She knew that he would want to know what had happened as well. She didn’t want to have to tell it twice, and she didn’t want Mary to have to tell it, either. Thesos showed up in only a few minutes, and pulled Mary into his arms. He started playing with her hair, unsure of how to comfort a human female.

  Carolina explained to Drako and Thesos what the legal advisor had said to Mary, and told them that Mary would have to share custody until the courts made their decision. She tried to make it sound better than it was, so Mary would calm down and not cry even more, but it was pretty difficult.

  Thesos was outraged, and Drako looked like he was in shock. Thesos paced the floor, talking about how he wished Mary’s husband had been left on the planet to explode instead. Drako stayed quiet, leaning against the wall. Carolina was ready to cry, but she knew if she did that Mary would start sobbing again, so she held back and tried to calm Thesos down. She knew he had grown to love Melanie like his own.

  Mary finally calmed down after about forty minutes. Thesos was still outraged, but he took Mary’s hand in his and ran one of his other hands down the back of her head, leaving it to rest on her neck.

  “Let’s take Melanie out tonight. We’re docking at a spaceport, and I hear they have a kind of carnival going on. She might like that,” Thesos suggested, trying to cheer her up.

  “That sounds wonderful, Thesos,” Mary answered.

  “Well, as soon as Melanie gets home, we’ll go.”

  “I’ll pack some food, so you won’t waste all your money.”

  “I’m not worried about money, Mary. Let’s just take her and have fun. You don’t need to worry about the money, either.”

  “Okay,” Mary answered, smiling a little. God, she loved Thesos.

  *****

  Melanie was excited when she got home and Thesos told her that they were going to a carnival. Mary hadn’t been able to take Melanie to anything like that before, because of her husband, so they were all enthusiastic about the idea. Carolina had waited at her suite, just so that she could make sure that Mary didn’t need her anymore for the night. As soon as they left, she took a quick shower.

  As she washed her hair, she found herself wondering if Drako would make a good father. He was so strong, yet at the same time he was loving and gentle. Then she wondered if he’d ever even thought of having kids before. Did she want kids? She wasn’t sure. She’d always thought she had plenty of time. The thought of having Drako’s baby filled her with both anxiousness and excitement. As she rinsed the conditioner out of her hair, she realized that she did want children someday. She also wanted to get married and have a loving husband, and when she thought of that word,
she thought of Drako. God, was she that far in love with him that he was the only person she could picture as a husband?

  She got out of the shower and dressed comfortably, since she didn’t have any liaison dates until tomorrow. It had been an emotionally draining day for her, so she just laid on the couch and watched a comedy on T.V. to lift her spirits a little as she tried to take in the thought of not having Melanie around all the time. The little girl had carved out a big place in Carolina’s heart.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Damn it! He was supposed to have told Carolina that he was leaving. They’d had dinner, watched a movie, and then the kissing started, and he’d gotten distracted. The rest of that night, they’d made love. His time was running out, and he had to leave for the next ship soon. What the hell was he going to tell her? When had things gotten so complicated?

  “Who pissed you off?" Turk asked, sitting beside him at the ship’s bar.

  “No one, unless you count the GPP.”

  “Still haven’t told Carolina that you’re leaving?”

  Drako shook his head. “No, and I don’t know how to say it. It’s become… complicated.”

  “Because you’re in love with her.”

  “What? No." He tried to deny it, but it sounded false even to his own ears. Did he love her?

  “You do, my friend. The sooner you realize it, the sooner you can try to find a way to handle the situation.”

  “I can’t love her. It’s too early for that.”

  “Do you think about her all the time?" Turk asked.

  “Yes.”

  “When you’re with her, do you feel complete and happy?”

  “I guess so.”

  “Does the idea of leaving her cause you pain in your chest?”

  Drako touched his chest instead of answering.

  “Then, my friend, you are most definitely in love.”

  *****

  Carolina had a lunch liaison with one of her VIP clients, a Terran ambassador who was meeting with some of his alien counterparts. Thank goodness Clen wasn’t there. As she nodded at something her client said, she felt for the first time that she didn’t want to be there. That had never happened to her before.

  Maybe it was because she had to do all the liaisons herself. On Terra, she had a team of liaisons. She preferred them to be single; when one of her liaisons began dating someone in their personal life seriously, she would shift them to a desk job to prevent conflicts. Her liaisons were not allowed to date the clients.

  But things were different now. She felt like she shouldn’t be with other men, even as a liaison, because of Drako. It just didn’t feel right anymore. Technically, she should’ve taken a desk job and taken herself off the liaison list, but she was a team of one. What was she going to do?

  Of course, that was the answer. She could hire a few liaisons to work for her business, the way she had on Terra. Why hadn’t she thought to do that before? It was so simple.

  She gave her client a huge smile. She couldn’t wait to tell Drako what she’d decided to do. It solved almost all of their problems.

  *****

  Mary paced back and forth. She was expecting the social worker the court had appointed. He had to interview Melanie to make sure she was happy here. Even though it was standard procedure, it made Mary nervous.

  “You need to relax, love. You’ll upset Melanie," Thesos said from where he sat on the sofa. They looked back at the open bedroom door. Melanie was playing with the dollhouse that Thesos had made for her.

  “He’s right, Mary. You’re a wonderful mother, and Melanie is a very happy child. The social worker will see that," Carolina reassured her as she sat down on a nearby chair.

  Mary nodded her head and came over to sit by Thesos. “You guys are right. I just have to calm down." She jumped when there was a knock at the door.

  “Easy, I’ll get it." Carolina stood up to answer the door. She gave the social worker a smile as she introduced herself and let him inside.

  “Hi, I’m Carolina. I live here with Mary and Melanie. This is Mary.” Carolina introduced Mary.

  “It’s good to meet you; I’m Jonathan Davies. Is the child available?”

  “Yes, let me go get her." Mary stood up and went to her bedroom. She came back with Melanie holding her hand. “Melanie, this is Mr. Davies. He’s going to ask a few simple questions, and then you can go back and play.”

  She looked up at that the strange, thin man. “Hi.”

  The man gave her a small smile. “Hello, Melanie. I wanted to ask you just a few questions.”

  “Okay.”

  “Who do you live with here in this suite?”

  “My Mom and Carolina.”

  “Do you like it here?”

  “It’s fun. Carolina is really nice, and I get to see Thesos all the time. He’s in love with my mom.”

  Thesos smiled at the little girl. She was a sweetheart. Who wouldn’t love her?

  The social worker looked slightly startled. “Your mother is dating a … a … Squid?" He looked from Thesos to Mary.

  Mary turned pale. “Yes, we’re dating. Is there a problem?”

  “You didn’t disclose this information from the beginning." He scribbled something down on his paper. “Does the Squid stay here?”

  There was a pause as Mary and Thesos looked at each other. Mary was panicking because she didn’t know how to answer. Thesos helped out.

  “I do not stay here, I have my own suite. Mary is very protective of Melanie.”

  The social worker looked relieved at that. “One more question. Melanie, your father wishes for you to come live with him. Would you want to live with him instead of with your mother?”

  The little girl looked at her mother with a sad face. Mary gave her a reassuring smile. “It’s okay, Melanie. Tell the truth and no one will be upset with you.”

  “I want to stay with my mom.”

  The social worker smiled at her and wrote her answer down. “Thank you for answering my questions.”

  Melanie was dismissed to go and finish playing with her dollhouse; Mary turned to Mr. Davies. “Is there anything else?”

  “Just keep your … relationship the way it is.”

  “Why?" Mary asked.

  “Your husband is causing all kinds of issues. If he thinks that there’s something more going on, he may use that to get custody." The social worker asked to be shown around the suite. He took some notes, and then said goodbye.

  Mary stared at the closed door. Even now, it felt like her husband was trying to ruin her life. The one bright spot in her life other than Melanie was Thesos, and her husband could yank that from her. She turned around and looked at Thesos. Strong, beautiful, kind, sexy Thesos.

  “I’m not giving you up," she blurted out.

  ‘Damn straight. We will be careful. On nights that Melanie is on sleepovers, you’ll come to my suite. I won’t stay here.”

  Mary nodded her agreement. She went over and let him pull her onto his lap. She loved him so much, but she had to make sure she didn’t lose her daughter.

  “It’s going to be okay," Thesos told her, holding her close. If he had to search out this asshole of a husband and beat the shit out of him, he would. There was no way he would let Melanie be taken from her mother. No way.

  *****

  “I cannot believe that shit," Drako announced after Carolina told him what happened with the social worker. They had met at his suite for lunch, and Drako had cooked for her again.

  “I know. I was shocked. It wasn’t just the fact that Mary was dating another man. The problem was with her dating Thesos, an alien. I didn’t realize that people had such an issue with interspecies couples.”

  “There aren’t enough interspecies couples for people to be used to seeing them. The ones I’ve seen do work. I went to a ceremony between a Terran and an Aquadratic. They seemed very happy." He was worried that Carolina might have second thoughts about their relationship, and he wanted to reassure her that it was pos
sible for them.

  She gave him a smile and took a bite of her food. “Anyway, you were going to tell me something right before I unloaded the stuff about the social worker’s visit. What was it?”

  “Um … well, I wanted to let you know that I’m … leaving the ship.”

  Chapter Fourteen

  “What?”

  “I’ve finished my investigation on this ship, and there are other ships that I have to look into as well.”

  “How long will you be gone?”

  “I don’t know. It depends on how long the investigation on each ship takes.”

  Carolina felt like she was being ripped in two. She was falling in love with him, and now there was a chance she might not see him again. She was on the verge of tears.

  “Are you…will you be coming back?”

  Drako reached out and took her hand in his. “Of course I will. I don’t want to leave you at all, but I need fulfill my obligation to the GPO. It’s important.”

  Carolina nodded her head in understanding, but she was still sad. What if he met someone else? What if the GPP sent him to more ships to investigate? That could take months, or even years.

  “When do you leave?" she asked, fighting back her tears.

  “First thing in the morning." His voice was strained as well.

  She nodded and placed her silverware down on the table, standing up. “Come on.”

  He looked at her with confusion. “Where are we going?”

  “If this is our last day together, I want to spend it in bed with you." She would treasure every moment.

  *****

  Drako stood up and walked over to her. He bent down and scooped her up in his arms, carrying her to his room. He wanted to make this special for her, so that she would think of him each day, and dream of him at night.

  He laid her gently on the bed and stood up to remove his clothes. Drako loved the way she watched him. Her eyes devoured every inch that he exposed. It turned him on so much that he dragged it out as long as possible.

  Drako slowly removed his shoes and pants, and his manhood sprung forth, hard and eager. Carolina licked her lips. She wanted to taste him so badly. Some of his pre-come had leaked out onto the head of his cock, and she couldn’t resist. She got to her hands and knees and crawled over to him. Kneeling at the edge of the bed, Carolina took him into her hands.