Yolanda Sfetsos: Alex Wales: Promise

“I can offer you a lot, if you’re willing to accept it,” Ulric said. He trailed his tongue up the side of her neck, followed it onto the underside of her chin, and back to her mouth. When he kissed her again, it was rough, hungrier. “I hate knowing that you’re out there in space on your own. Stay with me a while longer, and let’s see where this leads us.”

She tried to shake her head, but his grip was too tight to allow any movement. “As tempting and appealing as that sounds, I can’t.”

Alex sat back, Ulric’s erection caught beneath her. He groaned, closing his eyes for a second. The guy was a machine. He was always ready to go. He also happened to be the only man she’d encountered who was capable of matching her libido. They were perfect for each other on so many levels. Ulric could offer her so much-a life in a permanent place without the need to travel anywhere, countless hours of satisfying sex, and unlimited credits without the guilt of not earning a penny, because Ulric hadn’t even earned it himself. He’d inherited everything from his wealthy parents.

This is why he’s all wrong for me.

It was enough to keep her coming back, but she couldn’t stay.

Some people’s happiness was easier met than others, and Alex was happy with a ship and the attitude she carried in her genes. Ulric seemed to embrace the lazy, laid-back life he’d been handed on a platter, but he always looked bored, as if he was looking for the next big thing to get him off. Maybe that’s why he liked having her around.

Alex loved adventure, loved being out there. Travelling from one system to another was what made her feel alive. Nothing could match it. Well, nothing except a night of passion with Ulric.

“Why can’t you?” The tease in his eyes made her uneasy.

She shrugged. “I need to get the job done. Freelance is a huge responsibility.”

“Give it all up, then.” His mouth was only centimeters away from hers. “You don’t need to have so much responsibility resting on your shoulders.”

“What?” Alex backed away from him, and his fingers slid out of her hair.

“You heard me. Give it all up.”

Wide-eyed, she backed up until she could slide off the side of the bed to consider the insane suggestion she was positive she’d heard him make. Ulric was a lot of fun, a hell of a lover, and gorgeous, but she couldn’t quit her own life for him. Surely she hadn’t heard him right.

“Are you serious? You want me to give it all up, so I can sit on my ass all day with you?” She laughed at the thought.

“Your hot ass wouldn’t be sitting all day. I’m sure we could find a few things to keep us occupied.” He winked. “So, what do you say?”

“No. I can’t.” Alex shook her head to reinforce her decision. The curls bounced in front of her eyes as she made her way toward the armchair holding the rest of her discarded clothes. She grabbed her bra and slipped it on.

“No, don’t get dressed. I was enjoying the view.”

Alex’s pulse quickened. Why was this conversation having such a wild effect on her body? Why was he even suggesting such a thing?

“How long did you want me to stay?” She had to admit she was curious. A part of her might even want to accept. A tiny part she was determined to ignore.

“I don’t know…indefinitely.”

She couldn’t help but snort. “You’re not serious!?” She slipped her tank top on and could feel him watching her every move.

“Why wouldn’t I be?”

Alex adjusted the fitting top and turned to stare at him. “Ulric, I don’t know what game you’re playing, but we both know you’re not that type of guy.”

“What type of guy am I, then?”

She sighed. “You’re the type of guy who likes to roam free and get it on with whoever happens to be there at the time.” Alex had seen him chasing skirts firsthand, and before that, his reputation had done most of the talking.

He shook his head. “Maybe you’re right, but when I’m with you, I don’t know…something changes, and I don’t want to let you go.”

“Oh.” She knew what this was. He hated the ‘goodbye’ side of things. She did too, but she’d be back sooner or later.

“What’s ‘oh’ supposed to mean?”

She made her way to the side of the bed, knowing this was a risky move. “I understand. I really do, because I hate leaving as well.” She might end up kicking herself for admitting this, but what did she have to lose? She always managed to leave emotion out of their encounters but had otherwise shared with him as much as one person could with another. Being naked and vulnerable, giving into someone else’s sexual fantasies, and allowing them to be a part of your own was heavy stuff. It allowed for a certain degree of vulnerability, but it was all on a physical level.

“Okay, that’s easily fixed. Stay with me indefinitely.” His brown eyes were twinkling, hopeful. This was certainly a side of him she hadn’t seen before.

“Ulric, I just told you I can’t!”

“Why can’t you?” he asked.

“I have a job to do,” she almost shouted. “Stop trying to make things harder than they-”

“What if I told you that I love you?”

Alex opened her mouth to snap at him for interrupting, but she stopped. What the hell? Had she woken up in some sort of alternate universe? A man like Ulric Cale would never blurt out these words to anyone . He was control incarnate. To throw such a statement out there opened him up to rejection.

No one rejected him.

Besides, she didn’t know what to say, had never heard those words from anyone her whole life. In her 25 years, not a single man had ever uttered those words to her and meant it. Not even her father. Now, here was Ulric-the rich, arrogant guy who chased her for months before she eventually succumbed to his flirting-saying them. She’d never imagined he would be the one to say them.

She looked up, wishing she’d already had a chance to put her light-weight jacket on. Goosebumps rose along her skin. All of a sudden, she felt so darn cold. Not exactly the reaction she’d expected to feel when a man eventually said, “I love you.”

“You don’t mean it,” she whispered, meeting his eyes.

“Ah, yeah. I do.”

She released a shaky breath. “Ulric, don’t try to conquer me like you do your business ventures.” She twisted her hands over and over, until he forcibly took them in his. Did he honestly see her as just another challenge to be conquered, or was the accusation simply her defense mechanism to his unexpected admission?

She didn’t know. Not yet.

“That’s not what I’m trying to do, Alex.” He looked away, his eyes downcast. His fingertips toyed with hers. “This isn’t the reaction I expected the first time I managed to get those words out of my mouth.” He turned his gaze back to meet hers. She’d never seen vulnerability on his face, nor was it an emotion she’d ever expected to see on this over-confident individual.

Was he serious? Maybe Alex had become so cynical, she couldn’t wrap her mind around this.

“Then what are you trying to do?” Alex narrowed her eyes at the naked man lounged on the round bed in front of her. His body was utter perfection-muscles in all the right places and smooth, mostly hairless skin. If she didn’t know any better, she’d assume he was genetically engineered at birth or some sort of android, made to resemble a human.

That’s a creepy thought. After all, this was her lover.

Alex wasn’t usually a one-man kind of girl, but after the start of her affair with Ulric, that all changed. She’d lost interest in all the other possibilities she encountered on foreign planets. Maybe they’d somehow managed to change each other. She hadn’t admitted it to him-and never would-but she hadn’t taken a lover in years, because he kept her cravings sated.