Rhal Part 1 (Scifi Alien Serial Romance) (The Ujal) by Erin Tate Page B

a physical thing, an invisible beast that whipped at anyone who got too close.
    She should be afraid. She should fear for her life.
    She wasn’t—didn’t.
    “Cara…” He growled and fisted his hair, tugging lightly, before releasing the dark strands. “It is not as simple as that.”
    She fought for air, battling to calm herself while Rhal ripped out her heart. “Then explain it to me.” She padded forward, intent on invading his space, and didn’t stop until they were nearly chest-to-chest. “In very small, single syllable words. How was it? You claim to love me, want me in your life, but you won’t mate me because I can’t give you a family. Now I know that’s a lie, but was it a lie by ignorance or intent, Rhal?”
    “Cara,” he murmured and a flash of light flickered across his eyes, the blackness lit with flares of gold like the sun.
    As much as she hated him, she cared for him, and she couldn’t keep her hands to herself. She cupped his cheek gently, marveling at the clash of his deeply tanned skin with her paleness. “Ignorance or intent? I can forgive ignorance and we can move forward. We can figure this out.”
    Rhal was warm beneath her palm despite the cool ocean water that still clung to his skin. She stroked him gently with her thumb and enjoyed the feel of him. It’d been a week since she’d seen him, and she missed him every day. Every single one. She would usually watch him run his current group of males in training past the house she rented from Rina, hiding her smile when one young male or another succumbed to his scales. Running on the wet, sandy beach was a trail of both endurance and strength. The salt water would call to his scales while he pushed each of them to keep a rapid pace. Their goal was to keep up and keep to their skin.
    The male that’d taken his place was way too easy on this group of hopefuls, but watching them each morning as the sun rose made her feel closer to him. Even if she hadn’t thought they had a chance, she’d wanted him.
    More gold with a sparkling hint of red streaked through his eyes. “Ignorance or intent?” She could forgive one, but not the other—never the other, and he knew exactly why. “It’s a simple question, Rhal.”
    * * *
    “It’s a simple question, Rhal.”
    Cara did not know what she asked. She could not, for if she did, she would not put voice to the question. No, she would not have said the words aloud as her golden hair tumbled around her shoulders, her eyes sparkled with fury, and her body tensed with anger.
    Rage suited her. It made her so much more beautiful to him and called to his soul, made him want to answer her anger with a different kind of passion. His cock hardened and throbbed with need for Cara, to feel her hands on him, her mouth on him, his dick inside—
    No.
    No.
    His skin stretched tautly, his reaction to her like a caress to his scales, and they threatened to come to the surface, to show her how she affected him.
    A simple question? Never.
    “Cara…” She always told him the way he said her name touched something inside her. That it resonated in her chest.
    He did not tell her he felt the same—could not tell her. Could not give her hope. And yet he had. Through touches, kisses, and words. He did not push her away as he had so many others. No, he pulled her close, let her creep into his heart, and let her see more than any other.
    It was a mistake. Yet he did not know if he could have denied her. Not then. He would have to now. No, in truth, his words would send her reeling and running from him as fast as her human legs could carry her.
    His heart would break with every step.
    “Tell me,” she whispered, her eyes glistening. She knew his answer. She must know.
    The darkness in him stirred, reminding him why he’d allowed her close. It wanted her, craved her, wanted to possess her.
    Ignorance or intent?
    “Intent.” His voice was strong and sure, no hint of the pain that churned inside him. It was