Magnolia looked down at the baking tray. They looked…good. They looked right, just like the picture on her data crystal. Of course, she had to taste them. That would be the real test. Some things you just couldn’t get right no matter how hard you tried. She’d just have to wait for them to cool a little first.
The lights in the dining room were out, and as far as she knew, everyone who wasn’t on duty was in their quarters asleep. It was late, really late and Kesh was on duty for at least another hour. She could never sleep when he was on night duty. Their bed felt cold and lonely without him.
Tomorrow was her morning off, and the crew would be getting their own breakfasts so she could sleep in if Kesh would let her. Usually, he used it as an excuse to spend the morning seeing how many times he could make her come.
While waiting for her creation to cool, Magnolia cleaned the last of the dishes and used one of the synthesizers in the dining room to produce what her data crystal had suggested as accompaniments for her baking or rather the equivalents she’s come up with.
If they were a success, the crew would soon be indulging in all sorts of baked Earth treats. At least until the flour substitute she’d found ran out.
Magnolia had everything ready as Kesh walked through the doors to the dining room at the end of his shift. She had steaming tea for her and a mug of Lorca for Kesh. A strange drink made from a tree’s ground-up bark, Magnolia had tried it and thought it tasted worse than Citori wine.
Kesh stopped beside her and threaded one hand in her hair, drawing her towards him for a long, slow, thorough kiss. His tongue teased hers with slow strokes that mimicked what she knew he’d be doing with his cock in just a little while. When he drew back, she felt warm all over, and a slow throb had started in her sex. She panted softly, staring up at him a little dazed.
He turned his head, taking his heated black eyes away from her, and looked down at the counter beside them.
“Magnolia, what is all this?”
Turning away from Kesh, she picked up the plate with two box-shaped cakes on it and a knife, and her cup of tea.
“I made scones. Help me carry all this to the table.”
It hadn’t taken Kesh long to figure out he was officially roped into being her taste tester. He was also the person on the ship who bought her the crew’s complaints when something she cooked didn’t agree with them. It had only happened twice in the six months she’d been on the ship, and both times it had been because the person wasn’t capable of digesting one of the ingredients. Some species just didn’t have the capabilities of digesting certain things.
Kesh didn’t say anything. He just picked up his mug of Lorca and the remaining two small dishes and followed her around to the table in the dining room. When he was settled in the chair beside her, he asked, “What is a scone?”
Magnolia cut one of her golden brown scones in half before looking at Kesh.
“They’re a cross between cake and bread, sort of. They can be sweet or savory. These ones are sweet and plain. I thought that was best for my first attempt. This–” She pointed at the small dish that held a bright green, thick substance. “Is supposed to be like jam, a sweet, fruity spread, and this–” She moved her finger to the other small dish. “Is a replacement for whipped cream. The synthesizers didn’t have any, so I had to come up with another alternative. Apparently, Teb from Manik’s homeworld is similar.”
A strange look entered Kesh’s eyes, but all he said was, “So how do we eat them?”
Magnolia scooped up some of the thick, lumpy green spread and swiped it across the cut surface of one-half of her scones, and then followed with a scoop of Teb.
“Like that,” she replied and offered Kesh the scone, which he took from the plate, and she set out to fix her own.
They had a pact. Kesh had agreed to taste anything she made as long as she tasted it with him. Magnolia hadn’t been able to argue with that. After all, it was her cooking.
At precisely the same time, they lifted their scones and took a bite. Magnolia took a dainty bite, and to her surprise, Kesh took quite a substantial mouthful, never taking his eyes from hers.
Surprise swirled through Magnolia as the flavors danced along with her tongue. The scones were light, fluffy, and had just a hint of sweetness to them. The green, fruity spread, was pleasantly sweet with a slight tang to it, and the Teb was lusciously soft and smooth with a delicate nutty flavor.
Magnolia hummed in delight at her success and took another bite and another. By the time she was halfway through her half, Kesh reached for the plate and cut the second scone in half.
“I take it you like them?”
“Mmmhmm,” was his only response.
Warmth bloomed in Magnolia’s stomach, pleasure in her accomplishment spreading through her. She took another bite, chewing slowly, savoring the flavors, before reaching for her tea.
She watched as Kesh spread the last of the green jam on the two halves of scone and a thick layer of Teb on top. There was a small amount of the fluffy, pale pink Teb left in the dish, and to Magnolia’s surprise, he scooped it out with his finger and held it out to her.
“Open,” he growled.
The heat blooming in Magnolia’s belly spread, sliding through her insides as she slowly opened her mouth, and Kesh slipped his finger between her lips.
A feral look of need pulled his skin tight across his cheeks as she sucked the last of the Teb off his finger, caressing the length with her tongue as he slid it out. Her gaze was glued to his, so she saw the heat building in his eyes as she sucked on his finger.
Much to Magnolia’s surprise, Kesh returned to eating his scone as she finished hers, drank some more tea, and started on the second one.
“They’re quite good. I’m pleased with how they turned out. Do you think the crew would enjoy them?” Magnolia asked as she finished the last of her scone.
“I think you should wait and see if there are any unwanted side effects before you plan to feed them to the crew.”
“Yes, that’s an excellent point,” Magnolia said as she licked at her finger.
Kesh followed every movement of her mouth, his gaze locked to her fingers and lips. When he raised his gaze to look in her eyes, a shiver of anticipation shot down her spine.
Magnolia collected the dishes and returned them to the kitchen, expecting to find Kesh waiting for her, so they could head to their quarters. Instead, he was sprawled in the chair casually, his legs spread, watching her every move, like a lion just waiting to pounce.
“Are you…” Magnolia didn’t get to finish what she was about to ask.
Heat slammed through her as arousal lit up her body between one step and the next. Magnolia gasped as her nipples tightened to aching buds, her clit throbbed, and her core tightened in need all at the same time. Her knees wobbled as another wave of core clenching need washed over her.
“Oh, God,” she moaned as another wave took her to her knees.
“Come here, little flower.”
Kesh’s voice was a low, commanding rumble.
Another moan welled up in her chest as need washed through her in waves. This was no gentle rise in arousal from foreplay. This was like a tidal wave had crashed down on her body.
“Kesh, what’s happening?” she gasped.
“Do you know what Teb is, Magnolia?”
It was hard to think with need riding her body along the fine edge of pleasure and pain. The throbbing of her clit was so intense it almost brought tears to her eyes.
“It’s made from the pulp of a fruit on Manik’s planet. I asked him if it was safe for our species to eat, and he said it was fine.”
“I just bet he did,” Kesh growled. “It’s used as a stimulant during their fertility festivals, and newly mated couples eat it on their wedding nights to encourage the conception of the next generation. It’s banned on at least half of the Coalition planets, and it’s a highly prized item on the black market. Out here, real Teb, which tastes ten times better and works ten times faster than the stuff out of the synthesizer, is worth its weight in cut gems. Now, come here.”
Magnolia couldn’t stop the trembling of her body or the honey that seeped from her core to slick the top of her thighs. Her core ached, desperate to be filled with the hard length of his cock. She was so close to coming she could feel tiny pulses in her core.
“So it’s an aphrodisiac?” she asked as she dropped to her hands.
She needed him so badly but knew there was no way she would be able to walk. She could barely move as it was. Every brush of her clothing across her skin set off a riot of sensation inside her.
“No, Magnolia, it’s not an aphrodisiac. It’s a drug, and you just ate enough of it to keep four people fucking all night.”
A whimper of frustration at her slow pace and the ever-increasing, burning need inside her was Magnolia’s answer. She crawled around the end of the long counter that separated the kitchen from the dining room.
“Fuck,” Kesh growled, and the lust in his voice sent a violent quiver through her.
She looked up to find him with his shirt off and the muscles of his chest and stomach straining and flexing as his breath pumped in and out of him. His erect cock was a thick ridge in his pants, and Magnolia’s mouth watered for a taste.
Need pushed her over the remaining space between them, and she almost groaned in relief as she lifted one hand and then the other off the floor as she moved in between his spread legs. Bending down, she aimed for that hard ridge in his pants and, at the last minute, set her teeth against his inner thigh and bit down.
She’d discovered in the last six months her male liked teeth. A lot. He liked to see his mark on her, although he’d been cautious not to break the skin, and he loved it when she went wild and bit him back.
A deep growl and a rough hand in her hair was all the warning she had that she’d pushed him too far. He dragged her up his body and onto his lap, pulling her down to kiss her with brutal passion as he tore her clothes from her body.
Every little touch and slide of fabric and skin against hers spiked her desire. Her skin felt heated and ultra-sensitive, sending a cascade of pleasure through her with each brush.
He kept up ravaging her mouth as he freed his cock and lifted her into position. The first nudge of the blunt head of Kesh’s cock against Magnolia’s sensitive core and every muscle in her body stiffened as pleasure arced through her. She dragged her mouth from his and cried out.
“Ride me, little flower,” Kesh commanded.
She whimpered in sheer ecstasy as she clung to his shoulders and slowly pressed down, taking him inside her slick, wet sheath inch by inch. Magnolia only made it halfway down before the exquisite sensations pushed her over the edge into a pulsing, moaning release.
Kesh growled and gripped her hips, dragging her the rest of the way down his shaft until she was settled against him. He lifted her with a fierce grip on her hips and slammed her back down, ripping a cry of pleasure from Magnolia.
She dug her nails into his shoulders as she rose, using the muscles of her thighs and let her weight drag her back down. Kesh kept up a low, rolling growl as Magnolia rode him, something he’d never done before. Maybe the Teb had affected him as much as it had affected her.
Magnolia didn’t know. All she did know was sex had never felt this intense like her whole body was about to shatter apart at any moment. The sensation of Kesh’s cock driving through her slick core almost brought tears to her eyes as pleasure so severe it almost felt like pain strummed through her. Her nipples rubbed on his chest with every rise and fall, sharp little stabs of pleasure that made her whimper.
A surprised cry turned into a scream as Kesh suddenly lunged forward and sank his sharp teeth into the soft flesh of her shoulder. A deep shudder wracked his body, and she felt his cock buck inside her as he filled her with his seed.
He released her shoulder, licking at the wounds he’d left with his teeth. He stroked his hands up her back, caressing her spinal ridges with light feathery strokes. By the time he reached her neck and tilted her head for his kiss, Magnolia was shuddering as another release rocked through her.
She tasted blood, her blood in his mouth, and the reality of the situation set in. Dragging her lips from his, she asked, “How long will it take for the Teb to wear off?”
Kesh stared at her with eyes that were streaked with red. Something else she’d never seen.
“It depends on the species and how much you consume. I estimate we have about ten minutes before the next wave rises, so unless you want to still be here when I fuck you again, little flower, I suggest we head for our quarters.”
He sounded strange. There was more growl in his voice than usual, an almost harsh, primal edge that sent a shiver down her spine.
“Are you all right?” Magnolia asked even as she felt heat starting to swirl inside her again.
Kesh stared at her for a long minute, and Magnolia thought he was trying to come to a decision.
“I’m fine. The Teb has other effects on some species, and it appears mine is one of them. It has weakened my control over some of my more savage instincts.” He slid his fingers along her jaw and cupped her face. “Can you handle it, Magnolia? We can go to Manik, and he can administer an antidote.”
A few hours of intensely pleasurable sex with the man she loved? There was no way Magnolia was going to chicken out of this experience.
“I can handle it, as long as you think you can keep up with me,” Magnolia replied with a smile.
A deep, harsh chuckle was his only response before he carried her to their quarters and proved to her he was more than male enough to keep up with her.