this television program with this android.” She shook her head, knowing he had no concept of Earth’s television programming, let alone the shows she’d watched. She sighed.
Aidan shook his head. “There is no television on BelaZed. Come, let me show you.” He propelled her forward.
She tried not to dwell on the reality of a world without television. Of course, when you’re living like something out of a science fiction novel, I guess you wouldn’t need television. It couldn’t hurt to see his world. I have options. He can’t refuse to take me back to Earth. If he came there to abduct me, then he can go back. I may just have to make him see that . Lost in her thoughts, she didn’t see how he parted the curtains, nor found and opened the door that led from her chambers.
White light filled the hallway, though none of the fabric muffled the walls. Along her right, the gleaming silver expanse of what must be the inner hull of the ship seemed to stretch into infinity. On her left, blue disks dotted the wall at odd intervals. Door handles, she wondered, then tried to imagine how a door would fit so snugly as to leave no marks.
Jacey craned her neck to try and see, and she caught Aidan smiling at her out of the corners of her eyes.
He turned a corner, and here, doors lined both sides of the silver hallway, lending credence to her theory that the one wall must have been the outer edge of the ship. The craft seemed enormous. Nearly a dozen steps later, Aidan stopped in front of a blue disk to his right.
He touched it with his fingers. Sparks flew from his fingers to the disk, and she wondered again what his being a domanin meant aside from the obvious. He hadn’t shocked her when he touched her, and she worried her lower lip as she watched him twist his fingers against the blue disk. A soft hiss filled the air, and then the door slid into the wall.
He led her into the room. The large chamber looked like a big silver dome. The walls, ceiling, even the floor, were patterned in interlocking octagons of some silver metal.
“You said you were going to show me the wonders of your planet,” she said. She slid her fingers from his, suddenly upset at herself for not trying to get away sooner.
“I am,” he said with a grin. “Trust me.”
“Trust you?” she questioned as Aidan turned from her. He tapped against a panel in the wall, and a small console slid out. He keyed in a few commands, and the silver walls faded away. Momentary blackness surrounded her before she heard the sounds of birdsong. The air shimmered. Suddenly, she stood in a lush park.
The change in scenery disorientated her, and she reached for a nearby tree. Her fingers closed around the trunk, and she gave a gasp of surprise. “Where are we?” she asked as Aidan threaded his way through the trees, though he only walked across the room to stand at her side once more.
“On my palatial grounds.”
Jacey stared at her hand around the tree trunk, squeezing with her fingers. “It’s real,” she breathed.
Aidan stepped forward, pinning her between the tree and his body. “So real,” he said, dipping his head so his hot breath brushed the shell of her ear, “that I could back you against it and fuck you.”
Jacey inched back against the rough bark of the tree. It poked her through the thin material of her gown. Lightly, Aidan caressed her collarbone, and the fabric parted at his touch. A light breeze teased her bare shoulder. Jacey stared down at her exposed flesh in wonder.
“How did you?” She looked up at him with wide eyes.
Aidan didn’t answer. Instead, he trailed his fingertips over the front of her gown, the fabric falling away at his touch. He skimmed his hands over her body. The feel of his flesh against hers sent shivers through Jacey’s body. Her tongue darted out to moisten suddenly dry lips, and she watched, transfixed, as he knelt in front of her. He flicked his fingers across her hardened nipple.
Reaching behind her, Jacey