Awakened by the Giant Read online

  Calden frowned. His evolving emotions regarding the Mentats, their feelings about females in general, and about Madeline in particular might present a significant problem in the days to come. Well, they would just have to get used to her and get used to the idea that they couldn’t touch her, he decided. He would be certain of that as soon as he got permission from FATHER to make her a permanent resident of the station.

  But he wouldn’t go to the AI overseer right away, he decided. There was still plenty of time on Madeline’s self-termination unit and he needed to prove her worth. He had to gather as much data from her as possible so he could have a wealth of information to offer as proof of her right to life here aboard the station.

  All knowledge is valuable, he would remind the AI. Madeline is a prolific source of knowledge—we cannot afford to be without her.

  Yes, he was certain he could make his case in a few days. In the meantime, he had to gather as much data from her as possible. He turned back to her, surreptitiously activating a small recording device and began asking her more questions about the lifecycle of the tiny, fluffy yellow creatures she had called “chickens.”

  Surely FATHER would understand how valuable she was after seeing the recordings—Calden was positive of it.

  Ten

  When they came back to Calden’s quarters at the end of the day the strange silver-green plant he kept by his work station had bloomed.

  “What’s that amazing smell?” Maddy lifted her nose, inhaling deeply to breathe in more of the heavenly scent. It was wild and tropical but delicate too, somehow—like orchids and peach blossoms and magnolias all at once.

  “I don’t know.” Calden frowned and looked around, scanning his area with sharp topaz eyes. “I have never smelled it before.”

  “Me either but it’s fabulous. Oh look!” Maddy caught sight of the blooming plant and ran over to get a closer look at it. The flowers it put out were huge compared with its size—bigger than her hand and shaded in a rainbow of warm tones. Starting at the point of the trumpet-like blossoms, the flowers went from pale yellow, to warm peach, to vivid pinkish-purple to deep crimson around the edges of the petals. They were absolutely stunning and like nothing Maddy had ever seen.

  Burying her face in the blossoms, she inhaled deeply. The sweet scent filled her lungs and her senses, making her feel almost dizzy and for a moment the tips of her nipples throbbed and her pussy felt suddenly hot and wet and swollen.

  Maddy shifted, pressing her thighs together. She still had on only the shirt-dress Calden had made for her and no underwear so it was easy to feel how wet she was getting. God, what was going on with her? Did it have anything to do with the strange plant? But surely not…

  “Madeline? Are you well?” Calden had come over to stand beside her and he was looking at her anxiously.

  “Fine. I’m fine.” She straightened up, though part of her wanted to keep smelling the strange, sweet blossoms. “I wonder what happened to your little plant to make it bloom? It was almost dead this morning—though it did look perkier at lunch.” They’d had a quick but satisfying Mid Meal, as Calden called it and honestly, she wasn’t really hungry for supper even though it was technically dinner time.

  “I don’t know.” Calden frowned. “But maybe you should step away from it, Madeline.”

  “Why?” She looked at him anxiously. “Is it poison?”

  “No—certainly not,” he said quickly. “But I have never seen it bloom before and the scent is very strong.”

  “It’s wonderful,” Maddy said, inhaling deeply. “But if it’ll make you feel better, we can go over to the bed and talk.”

  Now why had she said that? But she was already going to sit on the high side of the vast bed and Calden came to sit beside her without question.

  “What is it you wish to talk about?” he asked. “What to have for Last Meal?”

  “No—I’m not hungry right now,” Maddy said. Not for food, anyway, whispered a little voice in her head. “I think…think we need to talk about what happened earlier—in the enzyme baths.”

  “If you were feeling threatened when Jong-tar kept insisting that you and I were mating in some way—”

  “No, that was kind of scary but I knew you’d protect me,” Maddy told him. She put a hand on his knee and let it rest there lightly. “I’m talking about what happened before when you were, you know, spreading the gel on me to protect me from the enzymes in the baths.”

  God, what was she doing? There was no way she ought to be talking like this—bringing this up, she told herself. They’d spent the entire day not talking about what had happened that morning, by mutual silent consent. They had talked about branthas and chickens and cloning and just about everything and anything but the way he had slid his long fingers deep in her pussy and nearly made her come. And here she was, bringing it up while they sat side by side on his bed.

  Calden cleared his throat, looking uncomfortable. But Maddy noticed that he didn’t move her hand from his knee and the bulge in the black trousers he wore proved that he was just as interested in the subject as she was.

  “Um…if I touched you inappropriately, I apologize,” he said. “I…should not have done what I did.”

  “You did it because I asked you to,” Maddy said frankly. “So I’m the one who ought to be apologizing. I don’t…don’t know what got into me.” She looked down. “I shouldn’t want to do anything like that with you—with anyone—so soon after…after Pierce died.”

  “You shouldn’t feel bad,” Calden objected. “Suffering a loss doesn’t mean that your body stops having needs.” He cleared his throat. “I am the one who should not have done what I did. I took an oath when I came here to the Mentat station to swear off all females and any contact with them. Also—it is dangerous to do such things in public. I don’t think old Nusper-veis saw us but if he had—”

  “You could have gotten into a lot of trouble,” Maddy guessed, finishing for him. “I’m sorry, Calden—I would never want to hurt your standing here at the station. I never…never should have asked you to touch me so intimately.”

  “Don’t say that.” He cupped her cheek in his big hand and turned her eyes up to his. “It was my very great pleasure to touch you, Madeline,” he murmured. “To stroke and pleasure you with my fingers. You are so soft inside…so wet and hot. I never imagined…”

  “Because you’ve never been with a woman before, right?”

  He shook his head hesitantly. “Never.”

  It was hard to believe but it appeared that the big Kindred really was a virgin. Of course, if his people had run out of women to mate with, that made sense. And it wasn’t like Maddy could mate with him now—it was impossible due to their size difference. But it did give her an idea.

  “Calden,” she said, “I know you said it isn’t safe to do…that kind of thing in public, but what about private? Does your computer boss—FATHER—watch you here? In your room?”

  He frowned. “Of course not. Our privacy is sacrosanct.”

  “Well then…” Maddy let her hand slide higher up his thigh. “I was thinking—you know how you say all knowledge is valuable?”

  “Yes…” Calden cocked an eyebrow at her. “What are you saying, Madeline?”

  “I’m saying that I can provide you with knowledge you can’t get any other way,” Maddy said. “I can show you how it is between a man and a woman. Not completely, of course.” She eyed the bulge in his black trousers which was now positively huge. “But some. I could teach you how to kiss, at least.”

  She couldn’t believe she was saying this but somehow Maddy couldn’t stop—the warm, tantalizing scent of the beautiful blossoms that had appeared on the little plant seemed to invade her brain and make her lose her inhibitions completely.

  “How to ‘kiss’?” Calden frowned, as though he wasn’t completely certain what she meant.

  “Here—I’ll show you. Scoot back so you’re leaning against the headboard,” Maddy instructed him.

 
; Calden hesitated. “I am not sure if we should do this.” But the way his topaz eyes were blazing with need and the thickness of his cock, pressing against the black material of his trousers let Maddy know that he wanted this as much as she did.

  “It’s just kissing,” she said softly. “Think of it as a scientific experiment—remember, all knowledge is valuable. And this is knowledge you can’t get any other way.”

  “Well, when you put it that way, I suppose I would be remiss if I didn’t allow you to teach me to ‘kiss’,” Calden murmured. He scooted back until he was sitting with his back to the broad headboard and motioned for her. “Come teach me, Madeline. I wish to learn this new knowledge from you.”

  Feeling hot and cold all over, Maddy knee-walked over to him, since her hands were still too weak to support her if she tried to crawl. Boldly, she straddled his lean hips, even though she could feel her pussy spreading under her short, thin shirt-dress with the motion. God, she was so hot and wet between her legs! And now that she was close to Calden, she could smell his warm, spicy, masculine scent again. It seemed to mix with the sweet, tantalizing scent of the blossoms and fill her entire body with lust and need.

  “Like this,” she said, raising up on her knees to reach him and motioning for him to bend his head down. He did as she asked without question and Maddy leaned forward and placed a soft, open-mouthed kiss on his sensual lips.

  Calden made a noise of surprise and for a moment just sat there and let her kiss him. But then he began to kiss her back.

  The difference in their sizes might have been a problem if he had been a sloppy or over-eager kisser like some men Maddy had been with. But he was always careful of her and he followed her example of slow, soft, hot kisses.

  Daringly, Maddy darted her tongue between his lips, lapping at him teasingly, daring him to follow her lead. God, he tasted delicious! Spicy and hot and salty and sweet with an unknown undertone she couldn’t name but felt immediately addicted to.

  Calden growled softly and sucked gently on her tongue. His big hands were roving up and down her sides and now they slipped under the short shirt-dress and cupped her naked ass, kneading restlessly.

  Maddy moaned as he pulled her closer and repeated her actions, pressing his tongue gently between her lips to taste her in turn. For someone who had never kissed before, he was incredibly good at it—it was like he had some kind of instinct about what would turn her on the most.

  She could feel herself getting hotter—her body opening like one of the exotic-looking blossoms the unassuming little plant had so surprisingly produced. Her heart pounded and her nipples were so tight under the thin material of the shirt-dress they ached. Her pussy, spread even more open by the way that Calden was cupping and kneading her buttocks, felt like liquid heat and her clit throbbed with need.

  At last they broke apart, panting. Calden’s eyes were blazing a pure dark gold as they looked into hers.

  “So that is kissing,” he growled softly. “I like it, Madeline. I feel this is very valuable knowledge indeed.”

  “I thought you might.” Her voice sounded breathless in her own ears—she was almost panting she was so hot and needy. She wanted to find a way to get him to kiss her again, but she didn’t have to look for an excuse—Calden was already speaking again.

  “Madeline,” he murmured. “Tell me, is this ‘kissing’ we have been doing only for mouth to mouth?”

  “What…what do you mean?” she nearly panted.

  “I mean, can a kiss be given to other parts of the body besides the lips?” His eyes roved hungrily over her body. “Because I would very much like to make another experiment and kiss other parts of you as well.”

  “What…what other parts?” Maddy asked, her heart hammering in her chest. “Where else do you want to kiss me, Calden?”

  “To start with, I wish to kiss your breasts. Your bare breasts,” he growled softly. “The tips of them especially—your nipples. They seem very sensitive and I would like to see how you react to having them kissed.”

  “Oh, well…” Maddy cleared her throat. “I mean, I guess we shouldn’t but in the interest of science and helping you gain new knowledge, sure. You can…can kiss my breasts if you want, Calden.”

  His answer was a low growl of pure desire and then he was pulling the oversized shirt-dress down her body—it went easily since the neck was so big—until he had bared her breasts completely.

  For a moment he just looked at her.

  “Gods, Madeline, your breasts are perfect,” he groaned. He cupped them in his warm hands and for once Maddy was glad she was full-figured and big up top. If she’d been a tiny, stick-thin model-type girl, the size difference between them really would have been too much. But the fact that she had some “meat on her bones” really helped to even the playing field. Her breasts seemed to fit into Calden’s big palms just right.

  “I’m glad you like them,” she said huskily, feeling like her pulse was beating in every part of her body at once. “You can…can kiss them if you want to. Just like you kissed my mouth.”

  “Like this?” Calden leaned forward and placed a soft, hot, open-mouthed kiss on the stiff peak of her right nipple.

  Maddy had to stifle a moan of pleasure. They were trying to be scientific here, she reminded herself.

  “Yes,” she managed to get out. “Just…just like that.”

  “Hmm…you appear to react favorably to that,” Calden murmured.

  “Of course I’m reacting favorably—it feels amazing,” Maddy said.

  “I’m glad. But what if I deepen the kiss?” Calden raised an eyebrow at her.

  She shook her head. “I’m not sure what you mean. Why…why don’t you show me?”

  “Like this.” And then he was drawing her nipple into his hot, wet mouth and sucking it—sucking long and hard as though he couldn’t get enough of her.

  “Oh!” Maddy threw back her head and moaned. She buried her fingers in the many long braids of his hair and pressed her chest forward, offering him better access. “Oh, yes, Calden,” she gasped as he nipped lightly at her tender peak and then sucked her again, swirling his talented tongue around and around to ease the small ache he had caused. “Yes, just like that! Don’t stop!”

  He did stop but only to suck her left nipple as well, while he pulled her closer. It was as though he couldn’t get enough of sucking and licking her tight nipples. Which was fine with Maddy—she couldn’t get enough either. With every pull of his hot, wet mouth he sent showers of sparks straight down between her legs to her pussy. But just as she felt like she was going to catch fire from the waist down, the big Kindred pulled back, panting.

  “Madeline,” he growled, his eyes blazing with need. “I want to try something else. Another…experiment.”

  “You do?” Maddy looked at him uncertainly. She was panting herself—her pussy so wet and hot she could feel her juices trickling down her spread inner thighs. She’d begun to think she could come just from having him suck her breasts and she was sorry he’d stopped.

  “Yes, I do.” Calden looked at her. “I want to kiss another part of your body—I want to kiss your pussy.”

  Maddy felt her lust cool a little.

  “Oh God, Calden—I don’t know,” she murmured. “You might…might not like it.” And that would ruin everything, she finished silently to herself.

  Something similar had happened with Pierce when they had first gotten serious. He had gone down on other girls before—or so he said—but apparently none of them got as wet as Maddy did. When he had tried to eat her pussy, he had been completely turned-off by the amount of honey she produced, which had left Maddy feeling inferior and awful for a long time. She wasn’t at all eager to repeat that terrible experience.

  “I don’t know,” she said again.

  But once he had gotten started, Calden clearly wasn’t one to give up easily.

  “Please, Madeline,” he growled softly. “Just a kiss—just let me press one kiss to your outer pussy lips. Ple
ase.”

  “Well…” Maddy bit her lip. Just a kiss on the outside probably wouldn’t hurt. “Maybe…maybe just one,” she said, hesitantly. “If you’re very…very gentle and careful.”

  “I would never be anything but gentle and careful with you, nieka,” he murmured. “You’re so soft…so delicate. I just want to place a kiss on the softest, most delicate part of you.”

  Before she knew it, Maddy found that he was laying her back on the bed and stripping away the shirt-dress entirely. Then he pulled her to the edge of the bed so he could kneel before her and get better access to her inner thighs.

  Well so much for me being in charge of this “lesson” she thought as Calden stroked her naked body with his big, warm hands and then urged her to spread her thighs for him. He certainly is a fast learner!

  “Just one kiss,” he was murmuring. Then he paused. “Gods, Madeline, your inner thighs are all shiny with your juices. I never knew a female could get so wet.”

  “Oh, I…I’m sorry.” Memories of the past came crowding up, causing Maddy to freeze and then she tried desperately to shut her thighs.

  But Calden wouldn’t let her.

  “No—you’re beautiful, Madeline. Let me look at you. Let me taste you—taste your juices,” he murmured.

  Leaning down, he dragged his warm, wet tongue from her knee, all the way up her inner thigh, collecting all the honey that had spilled from her as she sat on his lap with her legs spread as he sucked her nipples.

  “Oh!” Maddy whispered breathlessly. Could it be that he liked this? That it turned him on instead of off?

  As though to answer her question, the big Kindred did it again—this time dragging his tongue up over her right thigh to collect the honey there.

  “Oh, Calden,” she whispered, looking down at him. He was staring at her open pussy, his eyes half-lidded with need. At last he looked up at her.

  “Gods, you taste delicious.” His deep voice was hoarse with desire. “I think I have been wanting to do this from the moment I first held you in my arms.”

  “You…you have?” Maddy asked breathlessly.