Bride's Holiday Gift Read online

  An Ellora’s Cave Romantica Publication

  www.ellorascave.com

  Bride’s Holiday Gift

  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

  Bride’s Holiday Gift Copyright © 2009 Solange Ayre.

  Edited by Helen Woodall.

  Cover art by Syneca.

  Electronic book Publication February 2009

  The terms Romantica® and Quickies® are registered trademarks of Ellora’s Cave Publishing.

  With the exception of quotes used in reviews, this book may not be reproduced or used in whole or in part by any means existing without written permission from the publisher, Ellora’s Cave Publishing, Inc.® 1056 Home Avenue, Akron OH 44310-3502.

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  This book is a work of fiction and any resemblance to persons, living or dead, or places, events or locales is purely coincidental. The characters are productions of the authors’ imagination and used fictitiously.

  Bride’s Holiday Gift

  Solange Ayre

  Dedication

  To the memory of William Sydney Porter (O. Henry), whose short stories have given me so much enjoyment.

  Chapter One

  “It’s extremely important to practice safe sex,” Secondus Delos said. His audience leaned forward, intent on the doctor’s words. The Terilian males knelt on stools with their Earthian wives seated beside them, separated from Delos and his wife by a transparent wall.

  Entranced, Janis watched her husband’s shoulder-length hair float around his face like a dark halo. She reached out to capture one of the soft strands. Delos paused in his lecture to smile at her.

  Although Jan had lived on the Terilian spaceship for six months, this was the first time she’d been weightless. Only her magnetic shoes kept her anchored to the floor of the zero-gravity chamber. The usual awareness of her head, arms and legs, pulled down by gravity, had disappeared. She was left with a strange feeling of giddiness and excitement—although some of that was the prospect of imminent sex with her alien husband.

  “I’ve treated many injuries that resulted from couples being careless,” Delos went on. His earnest tone seemed incongruous with his large, throbbing erection.

  Jan looked down at his penis, then out at the audience with a lift of her brows, letting them in on her amusement. “Delos,” she said, “show, don’t tell.”

  Her husband answered by pulling her into his arms and giving her a kiss so deeply passionate that her breasts tingled and her pussy pulsed with anticipation. She could hardly wait until his hard cock was inside her, thrilling her with deep, satisfying thrusts.

  He lifted her tunic over her head, revealing her naked body. Somewhere in the audience, a male growled with appreciation. The Terilians loved full-figured women. All the Earth women they’d taken onto the spaceship were Jan’s size or larger.

  She wondered where her younger self had gone, the woman who’d been embarrassed to wear a bathing suit in public. Delos’ wholehearted admiration of her well-padded breasts, hips and derriere had changed her attitude. She couldn’t think of herself as undesirable when the most fleeting look or touch brought him swiftly to her side, eager to mate.

  His gaze moved over her breasts and down to the trimmed black curls at the apex of her thighs. “Beautiful one,” he murmured in her ear, “I can’t wait to taste your sweet cream.”

  She trembled in response, eager to begin the demonstration.

  When their wives died from a virus en route to their new planet, the Terilian colonists had stopped at Earth and kidnapped a thousand carefully chosen women to be their new Brides. At first the women had been terrified at the abrupt removal from everything they knew on Earth.

  But it hadn’t taken long for Jan and the others to adjust. The Terilians, despite their catlike ears and retractable claws, looked like handsome, muscular men. And all of them were excellent lovers, since a Terilian’s climax was sparked by his wife’s powerful orgasm.

  Jan looked down, noticing a wonderful effect of zero-gravity—her full breasts were as perky as a teenager’s. Delos ran his palms down her arms, making her shiver with arousal. His hands ended on her breasts, rubbing and stroking.

  “Now pay attention,” Delos instructed the audience—as if they weren’t already enthralled by the sight of his skillful fingers teasing her nipples until they peaked.

  “I already know how to do that,” Secondus Varin said with a smirk, illustrating his words by cupping his wife’s breast. Mara shifted on her stool and whispered something to him that stamped pleasure on his face.

  “But if you’ve never mated in zero-gravity, you need to observe the technique,” Delos said.

  With a happy sigh Jan put her arms around him and caressed his taut buttocks. His firm cock pressed into her stomach. Although they made love almost every day, she never tired of running her palms over his muscular chest or licking his brown nipples.

  “You smell so good today,” she murmured, nibbling the sensitive spot between his neck and collarbone.

  “I can’t talk when you’re distracting me,” he whispered back.

  “That’s the idea.” She ran her finger teasingly around the head of his cock, pleased when he groaned.

  The males gazed at Jan, their wives at Delos. Their different scent-threads intensified, revealing their arousal.

  Terilians enjoyed exhibiting their sexual techniques to their friends and considered it no more unusual than a game of checkers would have been on Earth. When Delos had suggested this demonstration, Jan surprised herself by agreeing. Now she was startled to find that the audience’s presence was heightening her readiness for mating.

  On the other side of the transparent wall, her friend Snow said, “I can’t keep watching. I’m too horny.”

  “Patience.” Snow’s husband patted her thigh. “Let’s enjoy this.”

  Delos was paying no attention to the audience as he gazed into Jan’s eyes. The eagerly lustful expression on his beloved face thrilled her. “Ready?” he asked, cupping her cheek tenderly.

  Didn’t he smell the sweet, thick aroma of her arousal? “I’m always ready for you.”

  Smiling at her answer, he took her arm. They walked to the bed, their steps slowed by their magnetic shoes. Delos lay down and anchored himself to the bed with a strap around his waist, then kicked off his shoes.

  Clasping his hand, she removed her shoes. Unrestrained by gravity or magnetism she floated into the air, tethered only by his grip. She turned toward his cock. His big hands clasped her hips, bringing her down to straddle his face.

  Her stomach fluttered with anticipation. Many things on the ship delighted her but having her husband tease and lick her pussy surpassed almost everything else.

  “Positions like these are much easier in null gravity.” Delos turned his head toward the audience, apparently still determined to lecture. “But it’s essential that the spouse who is anchored keep a firm grip on the one who is free.”

  Was he drawing this out on purpose? She was so wet, so ready to begin.

  His hand moved enticingly over her buttocks and paused briefly to tease her anus. She couldn’t forego a whimper of impatience.

  “Why don’t y
ou give her what she wants, Del?” Varin called out.

  Undeterred by the interruption, Delos continued, “If Janis forgets to hold onto me while in the throes of orgasm, she might go sailing off and strike her head against the ceiling. The anchored partner is responsible—oohhh!” His speech ended abruptly as Jan fastened her lips around the head of his cock and sucked hard.

  She loved everything about her alien husband’s penis—the cylindrical shape of its head, its dark flush when erect, the smooth beauty of its length and thickness. Her tongue teased the slit until his entire cock twitched in her grasp.

  She engulfed his cock in her mouth, stroking the underside with her tongue. He responded with a long, satisfying lick of her labia, ending with a slow swirl to her clit. Exciting waves of sensation washed through her.

  This position had never been so easy before. She’d always been aware of the pressure on her knees. Now all discomfort was gone, allowing her to concentrate on the mind-numbing pleasure of his soft tongue probing her wet channel.

  Intent on pleasing him in return, she cradled his testicles in her palm as her lips stroked up and down his cock. He groaned deep in his throat.

  A quick glance from the corner of her eye showed the audience’s reaction. Snow straddled her husband’s lap, stroking his cock while she watched the demonstration. Varin had pulled down his wife’s tunic and was sucking her flushed, peaking nipples.

  Delos’ thrusting tongue stimulated her as successfully as his cock. She shuddered in ecstasy as her climax built. She lifted her head, compelled to release a powerful cry of longing and passion.

  In the back of the audience, one of the women had spread her legs wide. Her husband knelt in front of her, licking her pussy with evident enjoyment. She shrieked with pleasure, echoing Jan.

  Delos’ tongue rippled against Jan’s clit. She couldn’t stop moaning. He pulled her down closer against his face. She was almost swooning in delight but she didn’t forget to keep her hand moving up and down his beautiful, glistening penis.

  “Janis,” he gasped, “remember, we promised to mate.”

  She’d almost forgotten. Carefully she turned until she faced him. Her channel pulsed, aching for his cock.

  Gripping his hands, she rose up and positioned herself, then eased onto his penis. She closed her eyes, reveling in the wonderful penetration. She was so wet, it was easy to take him inside. The audience murmured their appreciation as she lowered herself until Delos’ cock was fully seated in her eager channel.

  She couldn’t get enough of that wonderful thickness inside her, caressing every nerve as she thrust herself up and down. He clutched her hips, helping her move. She wanted more…more…and he encouraged her by thrusting his pelvis upward.

  “Come for me,” Delos growled. “I want to feel you come.”

  Her orgasm struck her like a bolt of lightning. Her pussy spasmed around his cock while hot waves of sensation rippled uncontrollably through her body.

  She let her head fall back, panting, her eyes welling with tears.

  She’d never had sex like this on Earth. Perhaps because she’d never felt so intensely about any human man.

  Delos climaxed with a shout, his hands squeezing her hips as he exploded inside her.

  The wives clapped. After a moment the husbands joined in enthusiastically—the custom of applause was gaining favor among the Terilians.

  Delos gazed up at her. The adoration in his eyes blinded her to everything but him. She wanted to stay like this forever, reveling in his love and returning it wordlessly while their bodies were still joined.

  “Wonderful,” he sighed. “Are you sure you’ve never done that before?”

  “You just took my zero-gravity virginity,” she said, bending to give him a kiss.

  “Hey, you two!” Snow called to them. “How about an encore?”

  “I’m willing,” Jan said. The idea of mating while she took a turn bound to the table was strangely tempting.

  Impatience flashed through her when Delos asked the ship’s computer, “Belmarra, what time is it?”

  “0870 hours,” the computer replied. “The fast commences in two minutes.”

  “The demonstration is over,” Delos announced. Earthians and Terilians alike wore disappointed expressions as they filed out of the room.

  This was the first Jan had heard about a fast. First Meal, a cup of spicy fligga, had been an hour ago. Her stomach was growling for solid food.

  Gently Delos raised her off his chest. “Hungry?” He unbuckled his waist-strap. “I’m ready for Second Meal.”

  Now she was confused. “What did Belmarra mean about a fast?”

  “It’s a sexual fast. Ten centuries ago the Great Fur-Mother arrived on Teril. In two days we commemorate her landing.” With a regretful look he added, “We must refrain from mating until 0900 hours on the holiday.”

  No sex for two whole days? Fifty hours…and Terilian hours were seventy-two minutes long. Jan groaned. This was worse than not eating. “I thought you didn’t believe in the Old Religion,” she said indignantly.

  “I don’t.” The corner of his mouth quirked up. “But that doesn’t mean I’m willing to insult the Great One by ignoring her canons.”

  As they walked to the dining hall for Second Meal, Delos told her more about the upcoming holiday. “Believers say the Fur-Mother brought the concept of marriage to Teril,” he said. “So husbands and wives celebrate Her day by giving each other gifts.”

  Worry tumbled through Jan. She owned nothing except her clothing and the purse she’d had with her when she’d been abducted from Earth.

  “How can I buy you a gift? You know there isn’t a single delikin in my account.” She still didn’t understand the Terilian economic system. Most people on the ship had tasks to perform but no one seemed to get paid.

  “Don’t worry,” Delos said, stopping and looking into her face. “The Council passes out compensation and awards on the holiday. I’m sure you’ll be given something for your work as the Brides’ liaison.”

  But how could she buy him something in one of the ship’s stores if she wouldn’t have money until the holiday itself? She couldn’t very well borrow from him to buy his gift.

  He must have noticed her dismay because he rested his palms gently on her shoulders. “We’ll celebrate with gifts next year. You’ll like the rest of the holiday. The husbands are planning a special feast for Fourth Meal, with music afterward.”

  She managed not to shudder. The Terilian version of music was privately called “yowling” by the Earthians.

  A grin lurked on his face. “There are other aspects you’ll appreciate.”

  “Tell me.”

  “Let me surprise you, beautiful one. You’ll enjoy yourself.” Leaning forward, he kissed her tenderly. “I’ll make sure of it.”

  His heartfelt words made her ache with love for him. And made her more determined than ever to buy him a suitable gift.

  * * * * *

  Frustrated, Jan gazed at the contents of her purse, spread across the bed in her cabin. A wallet filled with credit cards. Coins amounting to one dollar and eighty-seven cents. A chocolate bar, her last bit of candy from Earth, that she was rationing to one bite per week. An MP3 player, now useless because she’d kept its headphones at work. Keys to a house and car that she’d never see again.

  She began scooping the items away as nostalgia for Earth flooded her.

  Delos was her world now.

  Spotting a small perfume vial, she smiled. A few months ago, she’d dabbed on the fragrance. Delos had become so aroused by her strange new scent that his erection had lasted fourteen hours, no matter how diligently they tried to satisfy him.

  Carefully she tucked the tiny vial into an inner pocket of her purse.

  Picking up her MP3 player, she turned it on long enough to go through her playlist. Her favorite music was all there—light opera, musicals, film scores. But without headphones or a docking station, the melodies were as inaccessible as though
they’d been locked in a bank vault.

  Among the Terilians, music was participatory only. While they liked singing in groups, they didn’t understand the concept of solitary listening. And even if they’d had headphones or earbuds, their equipment wouldn’t have fitted Earth women. The Terilians’ ears rose from the top of their heads, furry and pointed.

  She stared down at the MP3 player, her most precious reminder of life on Earth. She’d always been hopeful that someday one of the ship’s engineers would rig up a pair of headphones, perhaps copying the set that another Bride, Cheryl Barstow, owned.

  Her fingers clenched around the small electronic player. Could she bear to give it up?

  * * * * *

  Jan found Beth, the Bride of Primus Taddus, in Taddus’ elegant cabin. Three times the size of her own cabin, the room’s furniture was real wood—rare on the spaceship—while the elegant walls projected moving pictures of Teril’s jungles.

  “I don’t know.” Beth grimaced at the playlist. “I wish you had some country rock.”

  “You’ll learn to like this music,” Jan said firmly. “Just think, you’ll own something unique and valuable. Something very few women have.”

  “I’m not sure…”

  Jan gave her friend a shrewd look. Copper bracelets, gifts from Beth’s wealthy husband, hung from both arms while her red hair was held back with a broad copper band. She was always decked in black or gray, colors that only Primus-level males and their wives were allowed to wear.

  “You’ll be the only Council member’s wife with an MP3 player,” Jan said.

  “But you don’t even have the headphones.”

  “You have delikins in your account, right?”

  Beth raised her chin. “Taddus is one of the wealthiest males on the ship. He gives me delikins whenever I ask.”

  “Then buy the player from me and purchase the headphones from Cheryl Barstow.”

  The cabin door slid open. Primus Taddus stepped inside, glowering when he spotted Jan. Six months ago he’d wanted to marry her. He’d never forgiven Delos or Jan for falling in love with each other.