Riv's Sanctuary: A Sci-fi Alien Romance by A.G. Wilde (best books to read TXT) 📕

eyes widened. Her chest was rising and falling quickly as she gripped the edges of the box and her throat moved as she watched him.

She was trembling slightly; he could see the mop of light-colored strands that hung from her head shaking as she looked at him.

The tiny bump on her face that was her nose flared at the edges as she inhaled deeply, her small mouth forming a thin line after a few seconds.

Another growl rumbled low in his throat and he watched as the female’s brown eyes grew even larger.

He was scaring her.

He knew he was.

He probably looked like he was about to pounce on her and snap her neck. He wanted to snap someone’s neck, but it wasn’t hers.

Geblit Cakhura’s, preferably.

Every muscle in his being was tense, anger boiling beneath.

If he could see himself, he knew what he’d see—a large threatening male.

It’s what most beings saw when they looked at him and so far, this persona had served him well.

But the utter fear in the female’s eyes as she stared at him only made him growl again in anger.

Chest heaving, the female’s eyes darted from him around the room to land on his blaster.

She wouldn’t dare.

Gathering himself, he made to stand only for the female to jump suddenly from her box, so suddenly he hadn’t expected the movement, and within moments she was at the table.

Before he could even consider what she was about to do, he watched in shock as she lifted his blaster and pointed it right at him.

His own weapon.

Geblit Cakhura was a liar.

Not a very intelligent species, he’d said.

Well, you wouldn’t get one of his oogas pulling a blaster on him any day. Within seconds of freeing this, this … being, it was already threatening him.

The female’s breathing was coming hard as she watched him, her brown eyes still wide, and Riv let out a grunt of annoyance as he stood.

He must have stood much faster than she’d expected or maybe she was frightened because she was so small, for as he rose, she took a few steps back, her eyes moving up his frame to only get larger as they landed on his face.

“Look,” she spoke.

Her voice caught him off guard…or maybe it was that he hadn’t heard the voice of a female in so long, for hers was like music. Soft like a caress, even though she’d hardened her voice to speak firmly to him.

That one word stroked across his body, only making his annoyance grow.

“Ai dohnt meen yoo en-ee hahrm. Ai didn ahsk fer dis eederr.”

What?

She was speaking words, he assumed. The sounds didn’t appear to just be random.

The next time he saw Geblit, he was definitely going to snap his neck.

“Put down the weapon.” He could barely get the words through his gritted teeth.

The female didn’t budge.

Maybe she couldn’t understand him just as he couldn’t understand her.

Great. The least Geblit could have done was get her a translator chip.

The Torian had been right about one thing, though. He’d said she was a…he forgot the word. He hadn’t recognized the species and now that he was looking at her, it was clear the female standing in front of him wasn’t of any species he’d seen before. She was similar to other species he’d seen, of course, but not the same.

One could say she was similar to his species but there were obvious differences.

For one, she was pale all over it seemed and she wasn’t carrying the horns that were a feature of the females of his kind.

Taking a step toward her, he paused as she jerked the blaster in his direction.

“Dohnt moove uhntil yootell mee yoo arnt goh-ing to-hurrht mee.”

A growl rumbled low in his chest.

He could move across the room and take the weapon from her small hands within a second. He doubted she even knew how to use it. The safety was still on. But she looked so…daring, pulling strength from her own bravery, that he paused and considered leaving her with the thing.

Crossing his arms over his chest, he surveyed her, wondering what she was about to do next.

She took a moment, watching him with eyes that were becoming less wide as the moments passed. Finally happy that he was no longer moving towards her, she let out a breath.

“Oh-kay. Lehts stahrt ah-gen.”

7

The big blue guy wasn’t responding but at least he’d stopped growling at her as if he was about to advance and break her in two.

So far, this first impression wasn’t going well. It wasn’t going well at all.

Lauren gripped the blaster in her hands, still pointing it at the male in front of her.

The darn thing was heavy and her arms were already protesting—this was what a year without proper exercise brought her—but she wasn’t going to lower the weapon. Not when he still stood there as if ready to pounce and not while his entire frame seemed to fill the small room.

She doubted she could skirt around him and head for the door without him catching her. Wherever she ran, he would be there in a second. She reckoned the only reason he wasn’t in front of her, snatching the blaster from her hands, was because she had it trained on him.

That gave her the upper hand for a little while—at least until she could figure out how to calm him down enough so he wouldn’t hurt her.

She didn’t even know how to use the damn blaster. He would find that out soon enough. For now, she had to play it smart.

“You should sit and I’ll explain everything.” She used the blaster to motion to the chair, but he didn’t move. He didn’t even turn his head to glance at it.

Dammit. She wished he would at least say something.

Instead, his mouth was curled with distaste as he glared at her.

Shit.

Clearing her throat, she continued. “We got off on the wrong foot. I’m not a threat.” She glanced at the blaster…well, it certainly wasn’t helping with that point.

Shaking away the thought, she continued.