Domestic Duet: Domestic Alliance & Asset by Cora Blu

neither praised nor condemned his decision. It was a law. End of discussion. Not for Sadie.
    “Why keep our two races apart?” What did it say about the captain marrying a woman from Sadie’s world?
    “Karuntee have a physical advantage over humans.” He huffed. “I’d spend my time bailing my people out of your prison system.”
    True .
    “Like I said,” Montage added, “humans are dirty.”
    “Commander,” she said, directing her voice to the other alien. “I’m not dirty and I can read. Learning your language is not above my intelligence. Your arrogance is what would land you in prison down on my planet.”
    The swift move between men was a blur. Sadie drew back in the chair, curling Norese closer. The captain held a short blade to Montage’s side, their faces inches apart.
    “I would mourn the loss your absence would leave on my life and the karuntee population.” The captain pressed the blade tighter. Montage suppressed a groan. “Take a second look at the comfort my daughter finds in Ms. Alexander’s arms. Turn your face and look.” Sadie felt the weight of his gaze on her, the heaviness lingering even after he returned his attention to the captain. “Two years since the doctor placed Norese, my miracle, in my arms and she’s never had a mother. Sadie’s protection comes second only to Norese’s. Do you have a problem, Commander?”
    “None,” he said, then clenched his teeth. The muscle under his tattoo flexed, making it appear to move above his ear. What the hell just happened?
    Her stomached twisted into a knot, the sensation leaving her with her jaw gone slack. Did her captor, Captain Farkus, place her on his personal protection list of people never to touch?
    Montage drew a hand over his ponytail at the back of his head, stroking it repeatedly. He brought it over his shoulder, resting it over his chest. The tension in his shoulders eased, then he reached under the edge of his vest to massage the patch of hair, oddly to her, grew on his shoulder. The three-inch wide patch of hair, she’d witnessed him rubbing back in his home while he thought she was asleep when the doctor examined her. Did that provide the same relief as rubbing one’s temple? Their eyes met and he caught her staring. Heat snaked up her throat.
    “The pelt,” he said, “is a sign of a fully matured male, Sadie. Would you care to know its purpose, why we rub it?”
    She nodded, knowing good and well if he said it was sexually stimulating, her panties would be drenched in under sixty seconds.
    “It represses arousal.” The first drop of moisture slipped from her body. “When a female’s blood pressure is up, it triggers arousal in a male, mated or not. Never argue with a male you’re not mated to, unless you’re doing it to gain his attention. I suggest you wait until you know you can handle a karuntee, before teasing a full grown male.”
    Her mouth went slack. The two aliens were getting a hard-on listening to her argue.
    “I appreciate the warning, Captain. I had no idea. It wasn’t my intention… flirting. I have a tendency to speak my mind when I feel I’m being challenged.”
    He turned back to the control panel, his movements jerky and tight as he worked the buttons and keys. “You have much to learn.”
    “Keep that in mind,” she added to his warning, “I’m learning. First offense shouldn’t count against me.”
    Montage’s tight body visibly relaxed, the vein in his neck no longer held an erratic pulse.
    “Sadie, Ms. Alexander, it’s said a child can sense a cruel person, avoiding them in a room.” Montage gestured toward Norese asleep in her arms. “Norese is selective in who she allows to touch her. And my captain has never threatened my life for anyone. You must be special.”
    “I must be,” she drawled thick and southern, uncertain how to take what just happened. She held the captain’s world in her arms.
    ***
    An hour passed. The shuttle pulled into what Sadie thought was a